Ginebra head coach Tim Cone against Magnolia in PBA Season 50. Photo from PBA Images.
MANILA — The spotlight was already brighter than usual last Sunday, as the PBA held its grand and golden Season 50 opening, and with Manila Clasico also revisiting another chapter in its already rich history.
However, the Barangay Ginebra and Magnolia Hotshots rivalry went into even higher gear, as ex-Gin King LA Tenorio finally made his head coaching debut — capping it off with a victory against his old team.
But for his longtime mentor Tim Cone, all these outside noise didn’t matter, dismissing the narratives as mere distractions from what he viewed as simply another game.
“That has nothing to do with anything. I’m happy for LA, sad for myself,” Cone said before exiting the Araneta Coliseum. “You guys are making a bigger deal out of it than either he and I are. We’re friends, and it’s just the same when I play against Chot Reyes, Jeff Cariaso, it’s the same.”
“It’s much bigger for LA than it is for me tonight,” he added, before also brushing off how their schedule is designed with an early clash vs. Magnolia. “We had to play them at some point. We have a tough schedule, Magnolia is not the only team we have to play, so we need to control what we need.”
Tenorio, for his part, pushed all the right buttons right from the opening tip with the help of his intensive familiarity with Ginebra’s system.
And for Cone, these are the factors that need to be given focus, especially since they allowed the Hotshots to score 17 points while also only putting up three markers to start the game.
“There was nothing positive tonight,” he said of the Gin Kings who never led in the contest, while also committing 21 turnovers. “I need to forget about this one really quickly.”
Asked if there was any silver lining for him or his team, Cone also had nothing to offer.
“I didn’t see anyone play well tonight, and it all started from our first group,” he insisted. “We've got to pick it up, we can’t play like this and expect to win.”
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