By Adrian Stewart Co
Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings head coach Tim Cone assured that no one from their 18 players under contract will be released ahead of their title defense in the 2021 PBA Philippine Cup.
In an interview with SPIN Zoom In last Thursday, the many-time PBA champion coach said that, while not all of the 18 will be lined up, the rest will be placed in Ginebra’s 3×3 squad.
“We signed 18 year-long contracts. Everybody has at least a one-year contract. There is no short-term contract. All 18 will stay with us through the year, practice with us, and be there,” Cone said.
“We have to make a choice on the 15 at some point. But those guys are going to be back-ups. There’s also the 3-on-3 tournament we are thinking about also. There are a lot of combinations that could occur throughout the year,” he added.
Among the holdovers for the Kings were Negrenses Joe Devance and Jeffrei Chan, Japeth Aguilar, LA Tenorio, Mark Caguioa, Earl Scottie Thompson, Stanley Pringle, Prince Caperal, Arthur dela Cruz, Jared Dillinger, Raymond Aguilar, Aljon Mariano, Kent Salado, and Arvin Tolentino.
Newcomers for the team were Christian Standhardinger, who was acquired from NorthPort Batang Pier for Gregory Slaughter, and Jesper Ayaay as well as rookie selections Brian Enriquez and Ken Holmqvist.
According to Cone, he is not in a hurry to decide who will be included in the team roster and who will carry the Ginebra colors in the 3×3 tourney as he wants to see each player perform in practices.
“That’s an issue that you never want to make too fast or too quickly. You don’t want to make a decision right now. You want to keep the competitive spirit with the team and you keep battling and you let it work itself out through practice,” Cone said.
“But those are always really, really difficult position for a coach. He has to decide who those 15 guys are going to be. But the other three guys, no matter what happens, the other three guys are still going to stay with the team,” he added.
The Kings clinched the PBA Philippine Cup championship last year after defeating TNT Tropang Giga in five games inside the bubble at the Angeles University Foundation in Pampanga./ASC, WDJ