HALF of the 12 PBA teams competing in the 2022-23 PBA Governors' Cup opted to bring back old, reliable imports as the league put premium on familiarity and chemistry with local players.

KJ McDaniels will be back for a fourth PBA tour of duty as he returns to reinforce Meralco Bolts for the second straight conference this season.

Shawn Glover will also be back for the second straight year for Blackwater, and so is Du'Vaughn Maxwell with Phoenix.

On the other hand, energetic American forward Michael Qualls will be switching to play for Rain or Shine. He first saw action for NorthPort during the 2019 Governors' Cup, where he led the squad to a semifinal finish. Cameron Clark, who played for NLEX last season, will be suiting up for San Miguel.

As for Barangay Ginebra, the newly minted PBA Commissioner's Cup champion, the Gin Kings will bank on Justin Brownlee, the three-time Best Import winner who just last Monday took his oath of allegiance to the Republic of the Philippines after being granted Filipino citizenship.

At 34, Brownlee remains at the top of his game as evidenced by his perfect six out of six record in the PBA Finals. The former St. John's standout won his first-ever PBA championship, punctuating it with a buzzer-beating three-point shot in Game 6 to lead Ginebra to a 4-2 Finals series win over Meralco. That championship ended eight years of title drought for the league's most popular team.

He has led Ginebra to four of the last five Governors' Cup title since (2016, 2017, 2019, 2021), along with two championships in the Commissioner's Cup (2018 and 2022-23).

Blackwater coach Ariel Vanguardia believes Brownlee remains the yardstick among all PBA imports in the season-ending conference.

And familiarity with the PBA brand of basketball will be his greatest asset.

'He knows when to pace himself,' said Vanguardia in describing Brownlee. 'He's clutch.'

Brownlee has been solid during the recent Commissioner's Cup. Despite giving up five to six inches playing against 6-10 imports, the native of Tifton, Georgia showed to everyone he still is a force to be reckoned with as seen by his averages of 32.14 points, 11.43 rebounds, 7.0 assists and 1.14 steals during the recent Finals series.

During the Gin Kings' close-out game last Sunday, the resident Ginebra import erupted for 34 points, eight rebounds and 12 assists as Ginebra annihilated guest team Bay Area 114-99 to rule the Commissioner's Cup en route to a 4-2 series victory.

The Governors' Cup is scheduled to kick off this Sunday, though Brownlee and Ginebra will not see action until February 5 when they go up against the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Meanwhile, the new import who are set to make their first appearance this upcoming third conference include Jordan Williams of Terrafirma, Marcus Weathers (NorthPort), Ethan Rusbatch (Converge), Erik McCree (Magnolia), Jalen Hudson (TNT) and Jonathon Simmons (NLEX).