INJURY just won't spare Barangay Ginebra.
Veteran big man Joe Devance has been relegated to the injury list by the Kings after suffering another case of plantar fasciitis that made him missed the team's PBA Philippine Cup game against Phoenix Sunday night.
This time though, it's the right foot that has been troubling the 37-year-old Fil-Am.
"He has plantar fasciitis problems on his other foot, not the other foot that he's having a shot all the time," disclosed coach Tim Cone shortly after Ginebra eked out a 100-97 win over the league-leader Fuel Masters at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The injury to Devance comes just as the Kings welcome back to their fold fit-again big men Jervy Cruz and Art dela Cruz.
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Cone hopes Devance would only be out for a few weeks and be ready come the playoffs.
So far so good, Devance has been doing his own share to fast-track his comeback, according to Cone.
"He's doing a good job losing weight. He has lost a lot of weight the last few weeks," said Cone.
"So that takes off some of the pressure off his foot," stressed the Ginebra mentor. "So we think if he comes back, he can stay away from it because of the weight he lost."
In lieu of Devance, the Kings reactivated sophomore Julian Sargent, who is still recuperating from a shoulder injury.
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But it was Cruz and Aljon Mariano who filled in the void left by Devance by coming through with a combined 24 points to help the Kings rallied back for the win against the Fuel Masters.
"In the meantime, guys like Jervy and Aljon has to step up. That's for sure," said Cone. (RG)
