Tim Cone calls ‘scripted’ accusations in PBA ‘crazy, unfair’

By: Celest R. Flores - 10 years ago

MANILA, Philippines — As the epic seven-game battle between sister teams San Mig Coffee and Ginebra came to a close Thursday night, the issue that the series was “scripted” grew louder online.

Some spectators online are commenting that the series was rigged to go full route, even comparing it to the wrestling matches in WWE.

But San Mig Coffee head coach Tim Cone reiterated that such accusations are unfounded, and unfair to the players who push through the gruelling grind each game to produce for their respective teams.

“It’s an issue that I don’t dwell on… That’s really unfair to all of us that work our butts off everyday,” Cone said.

The multititled Cone spoke the day after the Mixers’ 110-87 win which clinched the last finals berth and ousted the crowd-darling Ginebra in seven games.

“We work so hard and we worked really hard in that game seven,” Cone said as his Mixers bounced back from a tough game 6 setback to seal the deal.

“The stress, the hardships and the heartbreak that we go through… Game 6 was really difficult for us to swallow. We really had a hard time at the locker room.”

Cone even recalled the time when the sports betting game popularly called “ending” was still rampant and fans often came up to him asking what would be the final score.

“It’s crazy. Of course I don’t know [what the final score would be],” Cone said. “The perception is out there but it’s not something that we dwell on or something we believe in.”

“It takes away from the hard work we put into the game. It’s unfair for people to say that.”

Commissioner Chito Salud also stressed that the teams and players in the league are bound to a sacred responsibility to “play the game and give the fans pure action.”

“For any of our teams to fool around with that responsibility at the expense of their corporate image will be fooling hardy. These teams are playing their guts out day in and day out and this is for the fans.”