TNT taps another ex-Rocket
The six-foot-six McDaniels averaged 9.2 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists in his rookie year with Sixers before he was traded to Houston the following season
TNT KaTropa is tapping another former Houston Rocket K.J. McDaniels for the season-ending Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Governors’ Cup set to begin 20 September.
McDaniels, the 32nd overall pick by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2004 rookie draft, was a teammate of Terrence Jones with the Rockets in 2015 season and was reportedly heavily recruited by KaTropa active consultant Mark Dickel to play here.
The six-foot-six McDaniels averaged 9.2 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists in his rookie year with Sixers before he was traded to Houston the following season. In 2017, he was shipped to Brooklyn Nets before joining Grand Rapids Drive in the NBA G-League.
He will be one of the few new faces in the Governors’ Cup as most of the teams are bringing back their reliable imports for the tournament.
Allen Durham is returning with Meralco Bolts while Justine Brownlee (Barangay Ginebra San Miguel), Romeo Travis (Magnolia), Eugene Phelps (Phoenix), and Olu Ashaolu (NLEX) are also suiting up anew for their former teams.
This will be Durham’s fourth consecutive stint with the Bolts as he first played with Barako Bull in 2014. He was responsible in leading the franchise to its first final appearance in 2016 before losing to the Kings.
He returned the following year and lost again to Ginebra in the finals and 2018, Meralco fell short to Alaska in the semifinals. Durham, a two-time Best Import in the league, is coming off a stint with Shiga Lakestars in Japan’s B.League.
Brownlee also suited up for the Kings in the Commissioner’s Cup and lost to TNT KaTropa in the semis. This will be his seventh stint with Ginebra.
Travis led the Hotshots to a crown last season in the same tournament after beating Alaska and Mike Harris in the finals.
Phelps helped the Fuel Masters reached the No. 2 spot last Governors’ Cup but were beaten twice by the Bolts in the quarterfinal stage.
Blackwater is parading former NLEX import Aaron Fuller in the tournament.
Meanwhile, grand slam-seeking San Miguel Beer is tapping Dez Wells for the Governors’ Cup. The six-foot-five Wells played college ball at Xavier and Maryland and went undrafted in the NBA in 2015.
Wells played for the Oklahoma City Blue in G-League in 2015-2016 season before bringing his act to Greece the following year. He last played for the VL Pesaro in Italy.