GANUELAS-ROSSER BROTHERS HOPES DREAM TEAM-UP LEADS TO A TROPHY FOR TNT

THE trade of Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser to TNT before the start of the PBA Philippine Cup set the stage for a long-awaited team-up with his older brother Matt.

The Ganuelas-Rosser household was naturally very happy when the news broke out since it marked the first time that Brandon and Matt became teammates ever.

"They were excited," said Brandon, when asked the reaction of their family. "I remember I messaged my dad, my mom, my younger brother, we have a group chat. (I said) I have a ‘Woj bomb’ for you guys. They were just really happy."

Brandon admitted it was an emotional moment when he played together briefly with his older brother in the first game of the conference against Rain or Shine last February 28 at the Ynares Center.

"First game, we shared the court together," said the 29-year-old Brandon. "It was kinda emotional actually when we were on the court together."

"Even watching him from that POV, from the bench, it’s weird. I’m used to watching him from the stands, cheering him on, cheering me on. It’s really special," he added.

Matt, 33, said he never had a chance to be teammates with Brandon since he is four years older. Both attended the same high school in Temecula Valley, but had different colleges. Matt attended Cal Poly Pomona while Brandon played at Central Arizona and UC Riverside.

"Honestly, it felt amazing," said Matt about being on the same team with little bro. "We talked about it since he came out here (in the Philippines). We have to find a way to be on a team together. We don’t know where. We don’t know when. We don’t know how it’s going to happen."

"Just our age gap," said Matt on why it took so long for them to become teammates. "We can never play together in high school. When I left, he came in. Same thing in college. Even summer leagues and stuff, when we got old enough to play together, it never really worked out. I was either here or he was at school."

The Ganuelas-Rosser brothers were on different teams when Brandon was drafted first in 2022. But even then, they rarely faced each other on the court especially during Brandon’s first year in the PBA after nursing an injury when he was still playing for Blackwater.

"There was obviously some buzz around that it could happen. But you never know. When it was finally official, official, we were all excited."

"My kids were laughing because everytime we play against him, they like to boo him. They like to trash talk him. I told them, you can’t trash talk him no more, we are on the same team," said Matt.

PHOTO: Jerome Ascano

Now that the dream has become a reality, Matt now looks forward to win a championship with his brother.

"Now, at this point of our careers, it’s a blessing to finally share the court together especially being on a team where we have aspirations to win a championship," said Matt, who won four PBA titles with San Miguel, and two with TNT.

"We both play to win. It’s good to be here (with TNT)," he added.

2024-03-29T10:18:22Z dg43tfdfdgfd