PBA: San Mig Coffee taps Matt Rogers, Denzel Bowles stuck with CBA contract

San Mig Coffee Mixers head coach Tim Cone announced that Matt Rogers will be their import for their upcoming defense of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup title.

Last year we were choosing between Matt Rogers and Denzel and we ended up with Denzel. This year we're very happy to be able to get Matt. — Tim Cone (@manilacone) January 16, 2013  

“Last year we were choosing between Matt Rogers and Denzel [Bowles] and we ended up with Denzel. This year we're very happy to be able to get Matt,” said Cone through his Twitter account @manilacone. Rogers stands at 6’11’’ and weighs 225 pounds. He played in the 2011-2012 season of the NBA D-League for the Texas Legends where he averaged 7.1 points and 4.4 rebounds. His best game of the season was a 15-point, 14-rebound effort against the Canton Charge last January. Rogers then asked for his release to play elsewhere. He found himself in Lebanon but his stay there did not last long. “First game, 13 minutes in and I was unintentionally elbowed in the forehead, which broke my left eyebrow and collapsed my left sinus cavity,” Rogers said in an interview with Kayla Rinker of MBCpathway.com. Rogers then went back to the United States where he played five games for the Indiana Pacers in the NBA Summer League. In the same interview, Rogers credited his stint in the Summer League as the reason why he got a contract with Spanish team Leyma Natura Coruña, a team in the Liga Española de Baloncesto (LEB) Gold League.

Denzel was of course our first choice, but he has a live contract in China and won't be available for the Opening. — Tim Cone (@manilacone) January 16, 2013  

@wantoneyyt18 We keep Denzel's rights. He can only play for us.Needless to say, we love him dearly, but we need to move on for the moment. — Tim Cone (@manilacone) January 16, 2013  

Cone also added though that "Denzel was of course our first choice, but he has a live contract in China and won't be available for the Opening. "We keep Denzel's rights. He can only play for us. Needless to say, we love him dearly, but we need to move on for the moment.” Bowles led the San Mig Coffee Mixers, who were then called the B-Meg Llamados, to the 2012 Commissioner's Cup title after scoring 39 points and grabbing 21 rebounds in game seven of their Finals series against the Talk ‘n Text Tropang Texters. After playing for the New Orleans Hornets in the NBA’s Summer League, Bowles signed a contract with the Zheijang Golden Bulls of the Chinese Basketball Association. He injured his knee back in December and had to head home to the United States for treatment.

I don't believe so. My contract in china doesn't end until the second week in feb. I'm sad too it didn't work out @aileen08s — Denzel Bowles (@Denzel_Bowles) January 14, 2013  

In a reply to a San Mig Coffee fan asking if he would come back to the PBA, Bowles, through his Twitter account @Denzel_Bowles, answered, “I don't believe so. My contract in China doesn't end until the second week in Feb. I'm sad too it didn't work out.” The Mixers will be going back to work this Monday for their first practice session in preparation for the 2013 PBA Commissioner’s Cup. - AMD, GMA News