LA Tenorio isn’t getting comfortable as head coach just yet—and not even an impressive opening-day win against longtime mentor Tim Cone and the highly fancied Barangay Ginebra San Miguel is changing that. For Tinyente, the Magnolia Hotshots’ 80-73 win is just one win and the start of a new chapter, both for the franchise and himself.
“I cannot be complacent just because we got this game. We got this win, but this is just the start of our journey, this is just the start ng journey ko sa Magnolia, so I cannot be complacent,” Tenorio said during his first post-game presser as a PBA coach on Sunday night.
If this was the start, then it was certainly a rousing one as the Hotshots scored the game’s first 10 points and led the entire game for an emphatic wire-to-wire victory against a team that’s generally regarded as one of the title favorites this Season 50.
Tenorio, Hotshots Are Preparing for Something Bigger
Incidentally, Magnolia’s opening-day win could be a portent of great things to come for Tenorio’s talented squad boosted by new acquisition Javi Gomez de Liaño, who showed his sweet stroke on Sunday with four triples.
But, again, Tenorio isn’t getting comfortable just yet—not with the team’s journey only starting. In fact, he’s egging on his team to keep on improving, just as he’s striving to be better himself, since they are preparing for something bigger—much, much bigger than a regular-season win against Ginebra.
“Sinasabi ko sa players na we have to get better every day, we have to be disciplined, we have to be focused on the things we need to do… May pinaghahandaan kaming mas malaki. So, ganun din ako as a coach. I want to learn every day, I want to get better, I want to stay disciplined…,” Tenorio added.
Defense Will Be Key
That “something bigger” is obviously a championship, and Tinyente knows more than anyone that defense matters in any title chase. And that’s why he’s preaching a defensive-first mindset in Magnolia.
“Ang key talaga for winning and getting all the championships is playing defense,” Tenorio pointed out. “So, talagang ‘yun ang pini-preach ko sa kanila. We want to play defense if we want to get to the next level.”
Judging by Magnolia’s wire-to-wire victory on opening night, the Hotshots led by Tenorio might just have it in them to reach that next level.
