Barangay Ginebra San Miguel coach Tim Cone has had his fair share of battles against Rain or Shine Elasto Painters mentor Yeng Guiao in the PBA. In fact, the fiery tactician from Pampanga owns a 5‑3 head‑to‑head record over Cone in the playoffs—proof enough that this coaching duel is far closer than accolades suggest.
Tim Cone Expects Tough Series vs. Guiao
The last time these two coaching legends met in the playoffs, Guiao steered his Elasto Painters to back‑to‑back wins and a spot in the semifinals of the 2016 PBA Commissioner’s Cup. Rain or Shine went on to the finals and captured only the franchise’s second championship.
Now, 10 years later, Guiao and Cone will square off again, this time in a best‑of‑seven series with a Finals berth at stake. Naturally, Cone expects a grueling matchup.
“There’s a lot of playoffs through the years… I just know how hard it is to go up against Yeng Guiao and his teams,” Cone said after Ginebra booked a ticket to the semis with a 112-81 rout of the Phoenix Fuel Masters. “They play the game extremely hard. They play the game extremely fast. They compete all the time… And they can wear you down in a seven‑game series because of their defense and who they go to.”
Cone is right. Rain or Shine’s pace is far and away the highest in the league, and its defensive rating—103.3—is the best this conference. The Elasto Painters also have workhorses like Jhonard Clarito and Caelan Tiongson, both of whom personify Guiao’s gritty, blue‑collar approach to basketball.
Wary of Getting Worn Out
Indeed, Tim Cone has reason to be concerned, especially given his tendency to shorten his rotation in the postseason and the uncertainty surrounding Justin Brownlee’s hamstring condition.
“There’s a lot of concerns going in against a team like that. Coach Yeng is so experienced in all these things… We came in the league at the same time. We’ve been coaching about the same number of years. He’s been through it all,” Cone pointed out. “So, I expect it to be a really, really tough series. Like I said, they can really wear you down over seven games.”
The solution, therefore, is obvious: finish the series in as few games as possible.
Then again, that’s easier said than done against a Yeng Guiao‑coached squad. Tim Cone should know.
