The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters have continued to be one of the best teams in the PBA, with their four-conference run of making the semis broken only in the last PBA Philippine Cup.
Even so, the always-pragmatic Yeng Guiao knows fully well that his team isn’t necessarily among the league’s most talented—at least not in the mold of, say, the San Miguel Beermen, the TNT Tropang 5G, and maybe even Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and the Converge FiberXers. Not yet, at least.
And that’s why his Elasto Painters will need to compensate—not only for that apparent talent disparity, but also for what’s becoming a glaring size disadvantage.
What Can Rain or Shine Do?
Then again, Rain or Shine has continuously been punching above its weight class, so to speak, so Guiao knows exactly what his team needs to do again this conference. And, in a nutshell, what the Elasto Painters need to do can be summed up as thus: hard work, fast pace, and lots of threes.
“We admit that we’re playing against teams that are probably more talented than we are, so we have to find ways to compensate for that…” Guiao told Rebanse in an exclusive interview. “We try to maximize our individual talents, try to put the players in situations where they can be more successful or their talents can be used to the maximum. Also, we’re trying to outwork other teams. Be a little bit more in condition or in shape. Try to be better skilled.”
Hard work, of course, has been one of the pillars of any Guiao-coached squad, and this team is no different, especially with players like Jhonard Clarito and Caelan Tiongson.
Rain or Shine in the Pace-and-Space Era
Guiao’s teams are also known for playing at a fast pace and shooting from distance, and these Elasto Painters are going to have to do more of both, according to Guiao, given how they’re undersized for the most part.
“We’re not big enough, and probably we’re undersized in all positions compared to the teams that are really primary contenders,” Guiao acknowledged. “But we’ve always tried to play at a higher pace. If you lack the size, the best way to compensate for that is to play fast, to play with pace, to be able to shoot the three a little better. That’s been one of our frustrations. If you’re shooting the three well, it makes everything easier.”
That frustration is understandable. While Rain or Shine has been able to keep playing up-tempo, that three-point shot continues to come and go. Last Philippine Cup, in particular, the Elasto Painters shot just 28.5% from distance and made just 8 of their 58 three-point attempts in their two losses to the Meralco Bolts that sent them packing.
Needless to say, Guiao is hoping those treys will fall more for Rain or Shine in the Commissioner’s Cup because it’s almost certain that the Elasto Painters will work as hard as humanly possible and try to play as fast as they can. Now, if only the three-ball can cooperate.
