Even the presence of the most iconic figure in franchise history failed to lift Ginebra to a rousing victory in Game 3 of its Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) best-of-seven finals series against San Miguel Beer late Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Robert Jaworski was dismayed over the way the Kings played in their 94-134 loss to the Beermen that pushed them to a 1-2 hole in this finals showdown.
That 38-point losing margin matched the largest in PBA finals history when, coincidentally, San Miguel also suffered a 61-99 beat down back in the 1998 All Filipino Cup championship against the Tim Cone-coached Alaska side.
For Jaworski, who already seen it all being a PBA star for 23 years, everything went wrong on Ginebra’ side.
But more than those few mistakes, he emphasized the lack of communication as the most telling blunder.
“They seemed to be lost somewhere. They’re not talking to each other,” said Jaworski, whose never-say-die attitude elevated Ginebra to its status as the league’s most popular team.
It was a different Ginebra that showed up in Game 3.
Jaworski said the Kings had a terrible time catching up with the Beermen, prompting them to fall prey to a huge second-half avalanche sparked by peppery playmaker Chris Ross.
“They’re too loose. There’s no way they can catch up. They have to go back to the drawing board and make the specific focus on what they have to do.”
It was the second time Jaworski came out to support Ginebra in this series only to witness another blowout.
Jaworski said Ginebra just could not afford to rest to have a shot at beating this well -oiled San Miguel squad.
“We’re fighting San Miguel which is a complete team. You cannot rest a second.”
In past occasions, Jaworski made an appearance inside the Ginebra dugout to deliver a pep talk, most of them ignited the Kings to launch a massive comeback.
This time, Jaworski refused to do it as he believes the players have to figure it out themselves.
“They get to talk it among themselves,” he said.
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