Tim Cone couldn’t help but liken his job at the helm for Ginebra to being the coach of Gilas Pilipinas.
“It’s almost like coaching the national team. Everywhere I go, there are Ginebra fans and I just love that,” he said.
And Friday’s fans day proved just that with legions of the ka-barangays trooping to Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan to celebrate Ginebra’s 2017 PBA Governors’ Cup for one last time.
Some of the fans even spent the night waiting for the arena to open, hoping to be part of the first 2,500 fans to take home giveaways from the event.
The victory party also served as the final sendoff for the retiring Jayjay Helterbrand, who is officialy closing this chapter of his career.
“All these people here, the supporters are the best thing of my career,” said Helterbrand. “Each and every game, they really made it worthwhile for us to play our best and they really give us the inspiration to go out there and give our all. You guys are the reason why we are here. We wouldn’t be here without you guys.”
Cone couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed with the love the fans have showered him and the whole Ginebra squad through this endeavor, which culminated in back-to-back championship in the season-ending conference.
“The fact that we played in front of 54,000 people in Game 7, I’m so proud of being a part of that and proud to be a part of these guys,” said the Granslam mentor, who to win not just two titles for the crowd favorites.
“I’m just so proud to be a part of the Ginebra family and I’m so proud that we were able to win two championships for you,” Cone said. “We hope to win many, many more.”