Willie Miller gets his revenge against Barako Bull
Beating Barako Bull is certainly a personal mission for current Talk ’N Text guard Willie Miller.
The former two-time pro league MVP earned some measure of revenge on Friday night when the Tropang Texters stopped the three-game winning streak of the Energy 80-75 in the PBA Commissioner's Cup at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
Playing against his former teammates for the first time since being snubbed by Barako Bull team management at the start of the pro league’s 40th season, the 5-foot-11 Miller came through with a decent showing of 13 markers, seven of them—anchored on a pair of triples—coming in the third canto as helped Talk ’N Text keep Barako Bull at bay.
Aside from providing instant offense on his new role as a back-up shooting guard, Miller also could not help but smile from ear-to-ear as he gained some measure of payback on the Energy, who dropped to 3-1 overall in the company of the Texters.
“Syempre lahat naman gusto naming talunin. Pero sa akin, personal lang talaga na gusto ko silang talunin,” Miller told a handful of sportscribes after emerging from the Texters’ dugout.
“Tinalo naman namin sila at sana hindi na manalo pa sa amin,” he added, tongue-in-cheek.
Fondly called by many as “The Thriller,” Miller also collected four rebounds, one block and an assist in more than 14 minutes of action.
But the Olongapo, Zambales native admitted he’s still far from his top form.
“Wala pa talaga ako sa kondisyon. Biglaan lang kasi ang pagkuha sa akin,” Miller admitted, referring to his entry to the Texters following the abrupt retirement of former skipper Jimmy Alapag at the start of the mid-season conference. “Adjustments pa rin sa role, (team) system, at takbuhan.”
Miller, however, said he’s doing his part to get back in shape. “Personal na pagte-training. ‘Yun naman kasi ang kailangan. Ilang months rin akong ma-lay-off. Naglaro lang ako (sa mga ligang labas). Wala akong ginawang pa-kondisyon.
"Last (All-Filipino) conference, hindi ko naman inasahan na may kukuha sa akin na team. Nagba-basketball lang ako pero walang extra workout. Nu’ng sinabihan lang ako ni Jimmy, saka ko lang ginawa ‘yung usual na ginagawa ko,” he shared.
His efforts certainly paid off this time and Miller can now relish this one: “Kaibigan naman natin lahat. Pero syempre mas maganda pa rin na tinalo ko sila,” he concluded.
