By REYNALD MAGALLON
Same old faces but different motivations this time.
Barangay Ginebra and TNT may be finding themselves at a Finals collision course for a third time in the PBA Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup – and motivations may entirely be different from the last instance – but expect a fiercer and more tenacious battle this time around.
Save for the pleasantries during the Finals press conference at the Kamay Kainan in Quezon City but players and coaches from both squads are surely ready to wage war in what PBA chairman Ricky Vargas labeled as ‘the best Finals that will ever happen’.
“If you take a look at it you know where it is heading to. Today, the Ginebra team is different and it will be a different team in the Finals but having said that, we will also be a different team in the Finals,” said Vargas.
“We will also do our best in the finals and probably because of that this may be the best Finals that will ever happen in the PBA,” added the TNT governor.
Tables have turned though since the last two teams lock horns in the Finals of the Governors’ Cup with Ginebra now boasting the depth it sorely missed last time out while TNT now without last conference Finals MVP and its heart and soul in Jayson Castro.
Since their loss last conference, the Kings have loaded up their weapons, adding Troy Rosario through free agency while also welcoming Jamie Malonzo and Jeremiah Gray back into the fold.
And for head coach Tim Cone, that will be his team’s biggest asset against the squad that has defeated them in their last two Finals appearances.
“I think we’re coming into this series with a lot more depth than we had in the last time we played them. And I think that’s going to be a big factor for us,” said Cone, which apart from Rosario, Malonzo and Gray, still have Scottie Thompson, Justin Brownlee, RJ Abarrientos, Japeth Aguilar and Stephen Holt to rely on.
For the part of TNT, head coach Chot Reyes is banking on the teams resilience – something that they have showcased when they managed to pull through with the semifinals win over Rain or Shine, despite the shocking injury to Castro.
“Our ability to play at a high level without Jason. He was the last finals MVP. (So it’s like taking that piece away is going to be a telling factor,” said Reyes.
“Having said that, the other players that we have, we’re not going to sell them short. Because they’ve shown in the last series how well they can play even without Jason. But I’d be lying if we don’t admit that it will be a big factor,” he added.
The task to take on the cudgels in Castro’s absence surely not only falls to the shoulders of super import Rondae Hollis-Jefferson but also to local stars Calvin Oftana, RR Pogoy and even Rey Nambatac.
The first two games of the Finals series are set at the Mall of Asia Arena with Game 1 firing off on Friday, March 14.
