TNT Tropang Giga was stunned following its early exit in the Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner's Cup.

Jayson Castro – the heart and soul of the powerhouse club – admitted that they couldn't believe that they will not be competing in the playoffs for the first time in the past eight conferences, where they also had three finals appearances with two under coach Chot Reyes.

The import-laced conference had been a disaster for TNT.

The Tropang Giga tinkered with their roster as they unloaded veteran forward Troy Rosario in a three-way deal with NLEX and Blackwater.

In exchange, the Tropang Giga were able to acquire talented swingman Calvin Oftana and veteran forward Raul Soyud from the Road Warriors.

Even Castro, a seven-time PBA champion, five-time Best Player of the Conference and two-time Finals Most Valuable Player, could only so much as he was sidelined by an ankle injury in their past three games.

Castro wasn't the only player sidelined by injury as Glenn Khobuntin just returned from a medial collateral ligament injury while import Cameron Oliver suffered a sprained knee in the crucial stretch of the eliminations.

Without their floor leader in Castro, the Tropang Giga had to bank on their young crew led by Mikey Williams, Oftana, Pogoy and Poy Erram.

"We are a playoff team," Castro told Daily Tribune in a telephone conversation.

"We were surprised that we're not able to make it there."

Castro believes that more than the injuries and other issues they have no control of, the internal problems also served as a major blow to their morale.

TNT team manager Jojo Lastimosa agrees, attributing their downfall to a lot of factors, including the Oftana-Rosario deal and their inability to have a complete team during training camp and other off-court issues.