Barangay Ginebra big man Japeth Aguilar is slowly getting back into rhythm despite playing limited minutes in their 93-86 victory over TNT in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Commissioner’s Cup last Sunday.

Aguilar, 40, said he doesn’t mind the limited exposure as long as he gets enough preparation for the playoffs.

The former Gilas Pilipinas star finished with six points and three rebounds in 15 minutes in his first game since after missing the last three games due to a lung injury.

“It’s nice to be out there playing with my teammates. I was able to prepare for the playoffs as well so it’s nice to play a game before it happens,” Aguilar said.

“I tried to get my rhythm inside the court.”

Aguilar said he is relieved that he won’t need surgery for the injury and added that he no longer has difficulty breathing.

“The good thing about it is that it’s self-correcting, so I just need to rest,” Aguilar said.

“I’m thankful that nothing serious happened to me. I have no trouble breathing.”

Ginebra coach Tim Cone said they are carefully managing Aguilar’s minutes as they prepare for their quarterfinal matchup against Phoenix Super LPG on Friday at 7:30 p.m. at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

The Kings, who secured the No. 2 seed with a 9-3 win-loss record, hold a twice-to-beat advantage and could quickly wrap up the series with a complete roster led by Justin Brownlee.

“We certainly wanted him to be comfortable getting back into play. We didn’t want to extend his minutes too long, but we really wanted to get him in there to get a feel for the competition,” Cone said.

“And you know, you’re out for two weeks, and then all of a sudden you come back and have to guard Bol Bol. I tell you, that was a tough assignment.”