There was a lot of motivation for Barangay Ginebra San Miguel when it pulled off a 111-93 conquest of Bay Area in the Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner's Cup.

But Kings coach Tim Cone stressed that the idea of winning over a decorated mentor in Brian Goorjian of the Dragons is already enough to fire them up in their blockbuster duel last Sunday at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.

"For me personally, I have so many reasons to get motivated," Cone said, noting that the Dragons blew into town like a hurricane as they beat all teams that blocked their way.

"They won four games here already and a couple of tough games as well as preseason game, including against the Korean team."

"Just like what Justin (Brownlee) said, we're not only representing Ginebra. We're also representing the whole league. And in many ways, we're representing the country."

There's no coach in the league as celebrated as Cone.

The 64-year-old American owns a record of 24 PBA titles, including a pair of grand slams with Alaska in 1996 and Magnolia in 2014.

He was the PBA Coach of the Year four times while leading the country to a bronze medal in the 1998 Asian Games and the gold medal in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games.

But when Goorjian arrived, the glow of Cone's coaching credentials somehow diminished.

The 69-year-old Australian, in fact, emerged as a six-time National Basketball League champion and Coach of the Year in a colorful coaching career that started in 1998.

He also served as assistant coach for the Guangdong Southern Tigers from 2015 to 2016 and Xinjiang Flying Tigers in 2018 to 2019 in the Chinese Basketball League.