Assembling the all-Nationals starting unit was the hard part. Getting them to play together might not be that much of a challenge.
Or, at least, Bong Ravena thinks so.
The TNT coach believes the star-studded squad should be on the same page by the time the KaTropa hit the court for the Philippine Cup, adding that other teams have successfully dealt with talent glut before.
“I know we’ll be fine,” Ravena told the Inquirer, shrugging off concerns on a potential clash of egos.
“If other teams can do it, why can’t we?” he said. “San Miguel pulled it off before.”
The KaTropa leapfrogged to the top of a shortlist of teams who can snap the San Miguel Beer dynasty in the league’s most prestigious tournaments after acquiring marquee defender JP “Poy” Erram from NLEX.
It took a while, but the deal that shipped the Gilas Pilipinas center to TNT via Blackwater was finally approved by the Office of the Commissioner last Friday.
Erram joins fellow national team mainstays Jayson Castro, Troy Rosario, Ray Parks Jr. and RR Pogoy in a vaunted starting unit that easily ranks the best on paper, especially with the five-time defending champion Beermen losing June Mar Fajardo to a leg injury.
Barangay Ginebra, the other squad tipped to challenge for the all-Filipino crown, took a major hit when talented center Greg Slaughter opted for a sabbatical instead of signing an extension.
But Ravena said everything has to work out on the court and that begins with making sure everybody contributes.
“It’s not only Poy and the others who need to deliver,” he said in an interview with SportsIQ, the Inquirer’s weekly sports talk show. “Everybody has to do their share.”