Daily Tribune
PBA commissioner Willie Marcial (at the back, second from right) presents Ginebra coach Tim Cone and TNT Tropang 5G mentor Chot Reyes together with the competitors in the PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup best-of-seven finals series that starts on Wednesday.
Whatever happened in the past will be thrown out of the window when defending champion TNT Tropang 5G and Barangay Ginebra clash in the best-of-seven finals series of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup starting tomorrow at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Tropang 5G head coach Chot Reyes said they are no longer thinking about their rollercoaster ride in the eliminations, including the injury of their super import Bol Bol in the semifinals, as they focus on beating the Kings to retain their title in this midseason conference.
The former Gilas Pilipinas mentor spearheaded the Tropang 5G in the pre-finals press conference on Monday, a day after wrapping up a grueling semifinal series against Meralco.
Reyes will be facing his good friend and former Gilas deputy, Tim Cone, who is fresh from beating Rain or Shine in an equally dramatic semis series marked by the bickering between Elasto Painters coach Yeng Guiao and Kings governor Alfrancis Chua at the sidelines.
“The idea of becoming the first-ever eighth-seeded team to win a championship? Those are nice things to hear, but in the end, it doesn’t really matter much for us. What matters is really how we prepare and how we play against a very high-quality team. All of the other things, for us, it’s just noise,” said Reyes, whose wards banked on Rondae Hollis-Jefferson to beat the Kings in six games in the finals last year.
“Whatever happened in the past, the history, the previous records, doesn’t really matter to me now.”
Despite their 93-86 victory last 10 May, Cone said he won’t downplay TNT in the finals given the quality of its coaching staff and players, led by veterans Jayson Castro, RR Pogoy, Rey Nambatac and new import Chris McCullough.
“We’re not surprised they’re here. They know how to win championships,” said Cone, the winningest coach in PBA history with 25 championships
“They struggled early just trying to figure things out coming from a championship and finals appearances. It’s really hard to get loaded up right away to start the conference. I think that just made them stronger.”
Ginebra and TNT took contrasting paths to reach the Commissioner’s Cup finals.
Backed by veteran import Justin Brownlee, the Kings secured the second seed with a 9-3 win-loss record and used their twice-to-beat advantage to eliminate Phoenix in the quarterfinals. Then, they dispatched Rain or Shine in six games for a chance to win its 16th PBA title.
As for TNT, it had to figure things out along the way for a chance to defend its title.
