By REYNALD MAGALLON
Barangay Ginebra head coach Tim Cone is looking at veteran guard Stanley Pringle to fill in the shoes of the injured Scottie Thompson and he’s keeping his fingers crossed that he stays healthy amidst the expected heavier workload.
The multi-titled mentor shared that the Kings have been closely monitoring the minutes of Pringle ever since his return from a knee injury last year and the team might have to unleash the 37-year-old guard this conference.
“We are normally trying to manage Stanley’s minutes trying to keep him down and continue to stay healthy but I told him this week that with Scottie out and no Justin Brownlee, he really needs to really step it up,” said Cone.
“I may have to play him more minutes, start him in the game and play more minutes,” he added.
The Kings are trying to navigate through life without star guard Scottie Thompson who remained out of commission due to a back injury. Cone said there’s even no definite timetable to his return which prompted him to explore options in filling up the role.
So far, Cone has been relying on Pringle and Maverick Ahanmisi in running the point with LA Tenorio and Nards Pinto also getting the share of the backcourt chores off the bench
Pringle actually showed a glimpse of his prime self when he top scored Ginebra with 17 points on top of his six assists in 32 minutes as a starter in the team’s 87-77 Manila Clasico win over Magnolia
Cone said Pringle had no qualms about the increased load and was actually excited at the prospect of playing longer minutes.
“He was like yeah let’s do it I’m ready,” Cone shared. “I think he’s excited about getting and playing normal minutes and not having him managed all the time”
“We just hope he can manage the heavier minutes and not break down. If he does, he’s a dominant player in our league,” he added.