Go no go for Governors’ Cup

Barangay Ginebra will be walking wounded as big man Isaac Go will not be able to return for the remainder of the Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup.

Kings head coach Tim Cone made the confirmation, saying that the sweet-shooting big man is expected to undergo rehabilitation and, possibly, surgery to treat a knee injury that he suffered during their game against Rain or Shine last month.

“No. there’s no way he will be available,” Cone said after 99-94 win over San Miguel Beer in Game 3 of their best-of-seven semifinal series late Sunday at the Dasmariñas City Arena.

“Still, we don’t have time for him to return yet. We don’t have a date.”

The 6-foot-7 Go was seen in crutches when he dropped by to watch a Ginebra game.

He said he was scheduled to undergo another magnetic resonance imaging test after the first was inconclusive due to swelling.

‘We don’t expect either of them to be ready unless something miraculous happens.’

But the injury was worse than expected, prompting Go to undergo a three-week rehabilitation program before getting tested anew.

“They’re going to let him (Go) do some rehab for three weeks, then test it. They want to try the conservative approach first,” Cone stressed, adding that Jamie Malonzo remains out after suffering a calf injury in April.

“So he’s going to get three more weeks of rest and rehab, and then they’ll put him on what they call a hop test, and after that they’ll decide whether they will continue that or go in to have surgery.”

To address the gaping hole in their frontcourt, the Kings plucked 42-year-old Joe Devance out of retirement to join import Justin Brownlee, Japeth Aguilar, and Ben Adamos in manning the shaded lanes.

But Cone said they will make do with what they have.

“We don’t expect either of them to be ready unless something miraculous happens,” Cone said.

“But we’ll go with what we have right now.”