MANILA,Philippines— Jimmy Alapag spent much of his PBA career donning TNT’s yellow threads, making opponents pay with his playmaking savvy and scoring.
On Sunday’s Commissioner’s Cup action at the Araneta Coliseum, he was on the opposite end of the court from the KaTropa—and a losing side of a titular duel at that.
“It’s business,” Alapag said after a 109-96 series-opening loss that gave his former team a headstart in their race-to-four series.
“My time with Talk ’N Text, for the 12 and a half years that I was there doesn’t change,” he added.
There was a bit of nostalgia in Alapag words, especially when talking about Harvey Carey and Jayson Castro, who he won multiple titles with.
“It’s great to see (Harvey) chucking that thing for 16, 17 years now. So again, he’s the ultimate pro. He’s doing a great job along with Jayson in leading [that] group.”
Alapag, who was once TNT’s cornerstone, helped The MVP franchise to six titles. Within those were two Most Valuable Player awards and a long list of individual accolades. Two years removed from his playing days, he moved on to coaching and in January of this year, joined San Miguel Beer as a deputy to Leo Austria.
“You don’t take away the six championships we won, you don’t take away the memories we built there,” he said. “But life goes one. As of right now, I’m here with San Miguel and doing whatever I can in my capacity to help the team.”
Right now, the memories and the friendship he has forged takes a backseat as he helps his new family to another title, and possibly the second jewel in their Triple Crown bid.
“TNT has been great the entire conference, they were great again tonight,” he said. “They’ve got an incredible import, Jayson’s doing a great job leading those guys tonight so again they’ve been playing well the entire conference.”
“So we’ll make adjustments and be better. Hopefully, the two-day breaks will help us prepare,” he closed.