Brownlee wins title anew, this time with Indonesian squad

MANILA, Philippines – Justin Brownlee weaved his magic anew following a championship run with the Pelita Jaya in the Indonesia Basketball League over the weekend at the Indomilk Arena.

A six-time champion and three-time Best Import awardee with mother team Barangay Ginebra in the PBA, Brownlee added the IBL title to his resume by anchoring Pelita Jaya to a 73-65 win in the winner-take-all Game 3.

Pelita Jaya bowed in Game 1, 84-71, before forcing a decider with an 82-70 win in Game 2.

Brownlee scored only nine points but his presence on both offensive and defensive ends proved more than enough for Pelita Jaya’s redemption after last winning the IBL in 2017.

The evergreen import previously won titles in ASEAN Basketball League, Lebanon and United Arab Emirates.

He also engineered Gilas Pilipinas’ redemption in the Southeast Asian Games and a historic gold medal triumph in the Asian Games after 61 years before bringing that winning tradition over to Indonesia.

Brownlee, 36, is expected to rejoin Ginebra’s training camp this week for the PBA Season 49 opener starting with the Governor’s Cup on Aug. 18 at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.

It’s a reunion of sorts for Brownlee and Ginebra after their previous stint last year as the former missed the PBA’s recent season due to a FIBA suspension.

Under the watch of also his Gilas mentor Tim Cone, the national team naturalized player is out for redemption with the Gin Kings in the PBA, where they last won back in the 2023 Commissioner’s Cup.

He will meet a mixture of returning and new imports this time around, led by his fierce rival Allen Durham of the Meralco Bolts.