On Thursday, Barangay Ginebra San Miguel guard Maverick Ahanmisi announced in a vlog that he has officially asked to be traded, noting that he just wants “the opportunity to play and showcase your talent” like any other player.
“So, it’s kind of a fine line between like being patient and waiting your turn. But I just turned 34 last month. I am now on, like, the back half of my career. There’s not much time to waste for me,” Ahanmisi added. “So, these are the times as a pro that you have to make decisions that are going to benefit you because at the end of the day, this is a business. You have to think about yourself. As selfish as it sounds, you’re going to have to do those things for you and your family.”
On the one hand, Ahanmisi’s trade request can be construed as that of an aging, disgruntled star looking for a change of scenery—and maybe a new lease of life. And maybe it is. As Ahanmisi said himself in his vlog, he is already 34 and just wants that chance to play. On the other hand, it might also be a sign, no matter how subtle, that there might be a bigger issue here and that the American-born guard’s trade request is but a symptom of a brewing problem within Ginebra.
Trouble in Paradise?
Think about it. Ahanmisi isn’t the first Ginebra player in recent years to request a trade, or at least a way out of the Barangay. Prior to the 2024 PBA Philippine Cup, Fil-German big man and franchise cornerstone admitted he was “open to being traded due to some dissatisfaction” way back in 2023 but ultimately changed his mind. C-Stan was eventually traded a year later, in 2024, to the Terrafirma Dyip for Isaac Go, Stephen Holt, and the third pick of the PBA Season 49 Draft (which Ginebra used to take RJ Abarrientos).
Then, prior to the start of PBA Season 50, Ginebra lost high-flying forward Jaime Malonzo, who opted to take his talents to the Japan B.League rather than stay with the Barangay. Ginebra coach Tim Cone said all the right things about Malonzo’s departure from the team, saying they knew all along of the Fil-Am’s desire to play overseas and that they weren’t surprised. All PR aside, it was a shock exit nonetheless, especially given how the SMC bloc—Ginebra, in particular—has managed to keep its key players (Standhardinger and Japeth Aguilar come to mind) despite reported interest from foreign leagues.
It’s a small sample size, but taken together, these situations beg the question: Is it time to wonder whether there is a systemic flaw at Barangay Ginebra—something about the culture, player roles, coaching style, or organizational expectations—that pushes established players towards leaving?
Let the Speculation Begin
To be fair, only Standhardinger has expressed some form of discontent with the franchise that he helped win four titles. Malonzo, at least publicly, never bad-mouthed Ginebra, while Ahanmisi was cordial in his vlog, pointing out that he’s “cool with everybody on that team” and that he didn’t ever want to like leave Ginebra.”
Then again, it’s not hard to come away thinking that not all is well at Ginebra. In fact, Ahanmisi not playing is more a by-product of a roster imbalance than it is a talent problem. In short, Ginebra has a glut of guards—Ahanmisi, Abarrientos, Scottie Thompson, Stephen Holt, Nards Pinto, and Jayson David—and it’s leaving Ahanmisi in Cone’s doghouse so to speak.
Speaking of the Cone doghouse, anyone who has closely followed the league’s winningest coach knows how quick Cone’s trigger can be when it comes to chewing out players—or benching them outright (especially those not in his good graces). Even Abarrientos, hailed as Ginebra’s next great guard, knows this as he has gotten a mouthful from Cone quite a few times already and has gotten benched as well.
Tim and the Triangle: Turning Gin Kings to Robots?
What’s more, Cone is notoriously hard-headed in his tactics. To win, he insists on using the Triangle even with talented guards like Abarrientos and Ahanmisi who’d likely fare better in a more modern offense like that of the TNT Tropang 5G or a free-flowing system such as the one the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters are implementing.
This insistence on running the Triangle comes on the heels of a six-year stretch from 2016 to 2022 when Cone opened up his offense a bit more, allowing his players to adjust on the fly rather than sticking with the system possession after possession after possession. Ginebra, incidentally, won six titles in those six years, including the 2020 Philippine Cup. But, starting in 2023, Cone reverted to his pet offense, and Ginebra hasn’t won a title since.
This isn’t to say Cone is what ails Ginebra as other factors are at play, obviously. Management’s approach to team-building, for instance, seems questionable at best—and proof of it is Ginebra’s guard-heavy lineup that is long on talent but short on toughness. But as the captain of this ship, it’s looking like he hasn’t made it any easy for his wards to attain success, whether collectively or individually. Ahanmisi’s descent from All-Star caliber player to benchwarmer, in particular, might be partly attributable to Cone and his strict, restrictive system.
Ahanmisi and Ginebra Are at a Crossroads
All told, Maverick Ahanmisi’s trade request might simply be a personal career move, but it could very well be an alarm bell that signals something else more worrying. When layered atop Malonzo’s exit and Standhardinger’s discontent, it seems to suggests that the crowd darlings may be grappling with deeper issues, like how to manage stars, how to adapt systems, and how to maintain morale, especially for veterans who believe they can do more.
That leaves us to this pivotal moment, a crossroads of sorts for Ahanmisi and maybe more for Ginebra. Every great franchise goes through rebuilding, transition, and internal reckoning, and Ginebra might be at such a moment. How Cone and the powers-that-be deal with this moment will determine not only the fate of Ahanmisi, but also the future of Ginebra.
