Happy Birthday, Kenneth Duremdes ( Jan 31 )

Close to two years into the pro league, the high-lfying Duremdes hasn't really blossomed into superstar status. He should have followed the footsteps of Meneses who was a near winner of the Rookie of the Year award on his first year as a pro and a Most Improved Player awardee the following season. Picked third overall in last year's draft by Sunkist, a lot of people felt that Duremdes would merely be a duplication of Meneses. He'd be a back-up guy. He'd forever play under the shadows of 'The Aerial Voyager'. Duremdes had thought along the same line, too, on his rookie year and admitted "It's okay for me to learn the ropes on my first year. I'm not in a hurry. I'm not complaining. Idol ko naman si Vergel, e." But he had projections for himself, too. He had somehow seen himself developing into a superstar on his second season. IS it something like a fleeting momentor could there be a ring of permanence to it? Kenneth Duremdes and Vergel Meneses co-existing and producing practically the same numbers in one game? Last Sunday, Sunkist Orange Juice snapped out of a three-game losing skid by beating Mobiline, 99-94. In that contest, Meneses shot 23 points while Duremdes added 21 in a sterling display of balanced offensive. So, such a thing can really happen, after all. Meneses and Duremdes can play side by side. And nothing like that has happened so far. In the past two conferences, he has remained as Meneses' back-up. Fact is, in the early part of the Governors' Cup, his playing time had further diminished all because import Tony Harris had encroached on it. "Kaunti na lang nga ang playing time ko, lumiit pa lalo dahil kay Harris, "he quipped. But that was quickly remedied as Sunkist sent Harris home in favor of the less selfcentered import, Lester Neal. Now, everybody's happy. Everybody's getting their playing time.