Barangay Ginebra San Miguel limped to a 1-3 start in this PBA Philippine Cup. It was the team’s worst start since the 2018 PBA Commissioner’s Cup, when they also started with three early defeats against a lone victory.
Tim Cone, however, is unfazed and remains defiant after his squad shook off the rut and dominated the NLEX Road Warriors on Sunday. In fact, it appears he had an inkling that Ginebra would struggle early, especially after what he described as a “gauntlet” to start off Season 50.
“We noticed that… It’s never happened before, opening against those five big teams,” Cone told reporters after Ginebra notched win no. 2 at NLEX’s expense. “We were prepared mentally that we knew we might struggle early and that our record may not be where we want it to be.”
Ginebra Goes Through the Gauntlet
Indeed, Cone was right. Ginebra had arguably the toughest start to this Philippine Cup, facing off with the rejigged Magnolia Hotshots in the season opener and then going up against the PBA’s last three champions in succession: TNT Tropang 5G, San Miguel Beermen, and Meralco Bolts.
Even NLEX is no slouch, finishing no. 2 in the elimination phase of the last Philippine Cup and showing tremendous promise with superstar Robert Bolick directing traffic, veteran Kevin Alas rediscovering his form, and young guys like JB Bahio and Jonnel Policarpio finding their stride.
So, yes, forgive Cone if he thought Ginebra would struggle early going through that gauntlet of a schedule.
Cone Wants Vindication
With Ginebra’s win over NLEX, Cone is hopeful that his team will be able to turn things around the soonest—and then maybe get another crack at Ginebra’s early tormentors down the line.
“I’m not happy with the 2-3 record, but it’s survival mode for us,” Cone said. “I would prefer 3-2 or 4-1 obviously, but that might have been too much to ask against all those teams. Hopefully, we can get to the playoffs and get another chance at them.”
If anything, Ginebra fans can take solace in the fact that when the crowd darlings last started 1-3, they managed to turn things around and ultimately won the title—Cone’s second with the fabled franchise.
But there’s just one caveat: Justin Brownlee flew in just in time to save the day back then. This time around, there’ll be no JB to fix things.
