‘Teammates prepared me for PBA physicality,’ says GlobalPort import Markeith Cummings

The PBA is notorious for taking a toll on imports unused to highly-physical play.

But GlobalPort import Markeith Cummings shrugged that off in his debut, scoring 37 points and grabbing 11 rebounds in a victory over Air 21.

The 24-year-old forward, in his first stint outside the United States, said practicing with his teammates prepared him for the physicality in his debut.

“I couldn’t do it without my teammates,” Cummings told InterAKTV in an exclusive interview.

“My teammates were also physical with me in practice so they showed me the ropes around everyday and how things are gonna go throughout the year.”

Cumming’s background in American football also helped him endure the battles at the Mall of Asia Arena.

“Actually, my first sport was football in high school. But when I entered college, I decided to choose basketball and I pursued my career in basketball,” said Cummings.

“It’s physical (in the PBA), but I have no problems with the physicality because I played football in high school.”

Cummings was personally recruited by GlobalPort coach Junel Baculi to play for the team, and he already had an idea of what he was getting into.

“When they gave me a call, they told me my role is to just come in and play hard, providing the energy, and be a leader. That’s what they brought me here to run the floor, make rebounds, and make shots. I have no problem playing the role like I’m playing right now,” said Cummings.

The athletic forward has seen firsthand the love of Filipinos’ for basketball

“I’m very aware how big basketball is in the Philippines and how passionate the fans are. I saw that during the LeBron James’ activity,” said Cummings, who drew raves from the crowd with several slam dunks in his first game.

“I like dunking a little bit.”

Cummings has also heard about the passion of the crowd during games of Barangay Ginebra San Miguel, the league’s most popular team. He is already looking forward to GlobalPort’s game against the fan favorites, hoping to earn the respect of more Filipinos with his play.

Source: http://www.interaksyon.com/interaktv/teammates-prepared-me-for-pba-physicality-says-globalport-import-markeith-cummings