Rondae Hollis-Jefferson is out for a year due to a torn Achilles injury

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

One of the best imports to ever grace the PBA hardwood will not be seeing action for at least a year.

In disheartening news for both the Meralco Bolts and the TNT Tropang 5G, former NBA player and PBA import Rondae Hollis-Jefferson suffered a right Achilles tendon rupture during an East Asia Super League (EASL) seeding game at the Capital Arena in Ilagan, Isabela.

RHJ is currently playing for Meralco as a guest import in the EASL, utilizing his offseason while he waits for the PBA Commissioner’s Cup to kick off and return to his mother franchise, TNT.

However, the ultimate chase of Meralco’s dream to finally get past the EASL hump suddenly went into limbo with the season-ending injury RHJ sustained.

It will also be a tough blow for the Tropang 5G, as they are looking to bounce back after their Grand Slam aspirations were denied by the San Miguel Beermen.

RHJ ruptured his Achilles tendon at the 5:44 mark of the third quarter during Meralco’s win over the Macau Black Bears.

After receiving the ball at the left elbow near the post, RHJ attempted an acrobatic drive but landed awkwardly in a collision with Macau’s Sam Deguara.

RHJ landed on just one foot and immediately screamed in pain, dragging himself out of the playing court to the baseline area.

All of his Meralco teammates stormed to him and checked if he was okay, but when they saw him grab his right ankle area, everyone in the Bolts staff, including the coaching pool, began to worry and held their heads down.

Despite losing RHJ with still a full quarter left to play, the Bolts were still able to pull off the win, courtesy of Justin Brownlee’s timely shooting backstopped by their collective paint defense.

RHJ was bound for another monster performance in the EASL, already tallying 15 points, four rebounds, and seven assists before being sent to the locker room.

With the recent development, Meralco will still decide whether they will replace RHJ with a new reinforcement or stick with their rotation of Brownlee and Cuban-Puerto Rican import Ismael Romero.