Ginebra crams on PBA prep with Laguna camp

Ginebra coach Tim Cone. –MARLO CUETO/Inquirer.net

Barangay Ginebra will be have a lot of catching up to do in terms of its preparation for the season-opening Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Commissioner’s Cup after coach Tim Cone and the Gin Kings’ core had a busy, victorious offseason representing Gilas Pilipinas.

But Alfrancis Chua believes the Kings can make up for lost time as they wait for Cone, Scottie Thompson, Justin Brownlee and Japeth Aguilar to finish their much-needed rest after Gilas Pilipinas’ unlikely run to the gold medal of the Hangzhou Asian Games (Asiad).

“They’ll be able to make up for it, slowly but surely, so that they can catch up for the upcoming opener,” the San Miguel Corporation sports director said.

The new season opens Nov. 5 with the import-spiced Commissioner’s Cup, where the Kings, who beat guest team Bay Area in seven games, are the defending champions.

Thompson and Aguilar have been focusing on Gilas since the lead up to the Fiba (International Basketball Federation) World Cup where they made the final roster. They eventually got called up again for the Asiad when Cone took over following the departure of Chot Reyes.

Brownlee missed out on the naturalized player’s spot for Gilas, which tapped NBA mainstay Jordan Clarkson, for the World Cup. But Brownlee put on a performance to remember in China, as the Philippines ended a 61-year wait for a gold.

Cone had to hand over Ginebra’s buildup for Season 48 to Olsen Racela and Kirk Collier as lead assistant Richard del Rosario and skipper LA Tenorio, who was recently declared cancer-free, also part of the Gilas staff.

But with Gilas members soon to be back in the fold, Ginebra hopes to speed up preparations with a camp.

“We’re planning to stay in Laguna for five days because it’s been a long time since we’ve been together,” said Chua. “We’ll do our best to catch up.”

Also looking to catch up are June Mar Fajardo, CJ Perez, Marcio Lassiter and Chris Ross, who will rejoin San Miguel Beer after recharging their batteries.

The Beermen have been preparing sans Fajardo and Perez for months, and had to train for almost a couple of weeks minus Terrence Romeo and Mo Tautuaa.