MANILA, Philippines – Ray Parks made his keenly awaited debut for TNT, but it did not end the way he wanted. 

The second overall pick saw his 17-point performance go down the drain as TNT absorbed a heartbreaking 93-96 defeat to Barangay Ginebra in the PBA Governors’ Cup on Friday, November 8. 

It was the second straight loss for TNT after winning its first 7 games and Parks could not help but own up to the defeat. 

“Just the breaks went the other way. I take full responsibility for the loss,” said Parks, who was traded away by Blackwater for Don Trollano, Tony Semerad, and a draft pick after two conferences with the team. 

“TNT is a great group and I’m still adjusting, but the guys did a great job of taking me in. I got to step into the plate and do better.” 

Although he took the rap for the loss, Parks was actually one of the main reasons TNT gave Barangay Ginebra a scare despite being down 82-92 with 4 minutes remaining. 

Parks either scored or assisted in 8 points of their game-tying 10-0 run – capped with a dime to Roger Pogoy, who knotted the score with a corner triple.

Barangay Ginebra, though, answered with a 4-1 spurt to nail the win as Parks missed what could have been the overtime-forcing three-pointer at the buzzer. 

“Just getting to know the system more, when to get my shots, and when not to,” Parks said when asked what he needs to improve on. 

“It’s more of self-thing and trying to get everybody their shots, make their job easier because that’s what I want to do for Roger [Pogoy], Troy [Rosario] and kuya Jayson [Castro] when he comes back because this is their team.” 

Parks added: “I just want to fit in, you know, help them out.” 

Having only 3 practices with TNT, Parks admitted he still has a long way to go in terms of fully having a grasp of the system his new team runs. 

“Sometimes it’s different when the lights are on, it’s showtime and the breaks of the game are different. Everything is quick and I got to get back into really knowing the system like the back of my hand.” 

TNT consultant Mark Dickel lauded Parks for his work down the stretch. 

“I was happy with him, I thought he played good, especially in the endgame, I thought he gave us a chance to get back in the game and tie it up,” Dickel said. 

Parks will have more than a week to adapt to TNT before facing Magnolia at the University of Southeastern Philippines Gym in Davao City on November 16. 

“I think in 8 days, Ray will be a little bit better, little bit more comfortable in his role, and hopefully, we look a little bit better the next game,” Dickel added. – Rappler.com