THEIRS is a new seething rivalry gaining traction and getting bigger as an attraction as the PBA enters its golden season and another decade as the leading sports entertainment in the country.
After a week’s rest, TNT and Barangay Ginebra return to the battlefield, locking horns in a third title collision in the last five conferences.
They clash amidst the backdrop of three-peat versus revenge, with the Tropang Giga trying to make it three in a row as the Gin Kings look to overcome the hump finally.
TNT’s Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Ginebra’s Justin Brownlee resume their rivalry – a classic matchup of two prized imports with no less than five Best Import awards and eight titles between themselves.
The big difference from the previous TNT-Ginebra disputes is that the local support casts will be thrown into battle in the PBA Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup Finals, which will be unwrapped Friday at the MOA Arena in Pasay City.
TNT will have to endure the absence of injury-hit ace guard Jayson Castro while Ginebra is back in full strength on the return of Jamie Malonzo and Jeremiah Gray, plus the addition of free-agent recruit Troy Rosario.
“Jayson is much more than just the skills he brings. It’s a lot of other things – leadership, maturity, reading the game. Those are so important in the finals. Those are critical elements,” said TNT coach Chot Reyes.
But they’ve been there and done that; they’re ready to battle and defy the odds with what they have.
“We just do not have to worry that he’s (Castro’s) not here, and just fight with who’s here. And what we have right now is no choice but to go out there and give it our best. We’ll see what happens,” said Reyes.
Ginebra, meanwhile, is to out to squeeze the best it could from a souped-up crew.
“We’re coming into this series with a lot more depth than we had in the last time we played them (Season 49 Governors’ Cup) and I think that’s going to be a big factor for us,” said Ginebra’s Tim Cone.
Hunger, desire, and determination are likely to factor in, too. Technically, it could be a shooting contest.
In the previous title playoff, the Tropang Giga drew a big edge from their three-point shooting.
The Tropa shot at a 39.6-percent marksmanship (67-of-169) and averaged 11 per game, which, coupled with their trademark defense, lifted them past the Gin Kings – four games to two – in the finals of the Governors’ Cup last November.
In their last semifinal series against Rain or Shine, Calvin Oftana and the other TNT gunners rifled in 43-of-131 from the three-point territory (32.82).
But the Gin Kings also did well in three-point shooting in their dispatching of Final Four opponent NorthPort, going 60-of-139 (43.17 percent) from the distance.
It could be a shooting contest, a clash of lockdown ploys, and a fierce showdown between two highly charged combatants.
