PBA finals a battle of wills between Tim Cone and Chot Reyes

BATTLE OF WILLS. In what could be a battle of wills, Coach Chot Reyes (left-center) of Talk ‘N Text poses like a boxer as he goes head to head with B-Meg Coach Tim Cone (right-center) when their teams meet in the PBA Finals, which starts on Monday. The two mentors are flanked by their players. FRANCIS T.J. OCHOA/Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines – Their career paths have crisscrossed at so many points that one of these days, it will be tough to think of one without the other. Chot Reyes started out his coaching career under Tim Cone. But their eventual separation even strengthened their links.

And now, here they are again.

“We’ve done this so many times before already with coach Tim,” said Reyes.

Reyes and Cone have shared so many moments together, share mutual respect for each other and have professed learning so much from each other. Both have been national team coaches and on both occasions, the other served as an assistant coach. Yet when their teams clash Monday in Game 1 of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals, the contrast in their styles will not only be palpable, it could end up defining the series.

“It’s kinda ironic that we’ve coached so much together and yet we coach completely different,” said Cone Friday during the Finals press conference at the Gateway Suites.

Both cerebral tacticians, Cone will pit his defense against Reyes’ high-octane offense. And if there’s one thing that both agree on it’s this:

“Whichever team imposes its will has the advantage.” Believe it or not, both coaches said the exact same thing.

For those who are as excited about the coaching battle as the general basketball fan is about the clash of PBA titans, here’s the key factor to look out for: “If we get dragged to an up-and-down, open-court type of game then we’re in trouble. But if we can use our size, make them play half court then we have a shot. But that’s really easier said than done,” Cone explained.

Reyes, with a team built to hit the open lanes at the touch of the defensive rebound, is hoping he can seduce the frontline-heavy Llamados into the sexiest type of basketball: Run and gun.

Cone, on the other hand, will try to force Talk ‘N Text to deal with Denzel Bowles and the hundred-and-one ways that James Yap can paint magic and artistry into a halfcourt set.

“People who think about Tim Cone always associate him with the Triangle Offense. But the things I learned from him the most is attention to detail and defense. Defense has always been his calling card,” Reyes said.

True. During those routine nights when the Alaska Aces would methodically rip apart a hapless foe in the 90s, even in the tail-end of a rout, you could hear Cone imploring his Hall-of-Fame starting unit to “stay low” on defense.

When the best-of-seven starts Monday, Cone will be preaching the same thing to the Llamados. And he admits it will be a challenge not to fall into the lure of the open court.

“We want the games to be a defensive struggle,” said Cone. “The way they play is very infectious. They can really get you to play the way they want to. It takes discipline not to play like that and it’s very hard to get your players to resist that temptation.”

“[Their style] is more fun. And they are really good at it and their team is built for it.”

And the Llamados really need to be sold on the principle Cone has prepared against Talk ‘N Text. After all, they’re not just going up against a run-and-gun team. They’re also going up against a squad that plays like every championship is a birthright; every title is something you have to win from them.

“Chot’s had such huge success with Talk ‘N Text that it’s going to be a challenge trying go out and put a dent into it,” Cone said.

It’s not going to be easy.

“It’s going to take commitment from the players and the only way to get that commitment is to give them the vision of what they do best,” said Cone, saying even a victory in Game 1 with the score way past the 100-point mark would mean trouble.

“If they see in their own minds that they can run with these guys then they’re going to go out and try to run with those guys. There’s no guarantee that we can’t win in the open court, but the odds certainly don’t favor us there,” he explained.

So this is what it all boils down to: Two teams with talented rosters hope to execute the game plan prepared by two coaches with similar backgrounds but with contrasting styles, each trying to impose his will on the other.