Cone rethinks Ginebra’s Game 6 strategy after win-or-go-home Bay Area reactivates Powell

Tim Cone and the rest of the Barangay Ginebra brain trust know what they are looking at heading into Game 6-a potential clincher in the Gin Kings’ title series against the Bay Area for the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Commissioner’s Cup.

And with history saying that of the first 59 teams to take a Game 5 out of a 2-2 stalemate, 44 went on to win the title, Cone shouldn’t worry about getting the job done with a two-to-one shot. title 15 franchise’s.

But the complexion of the game—and possibly the final two games of the series, if there ever was one—changed before Ginebra’s practice on Tuesday.

“We had to make a right turn because we found it [the news] in training,” Cone told the Inquirer on the night of the 5:45 clash with the Dragons back-to-the-wall at the Smart Araneta Coliseum when he was asked about the reactivation of Myles Powell, who will be a Bay Area import from now on. .

The high-scoring American guard, who averaged nearly 40 points before going down with a left foot problem before the playoffs, was given the go-signal by the team doctor and will give the Dragons a new look as they look to be a different defense. the challenge for Ginebra is smaller than Andrew Nicholson.

Powell hasn’t really beaten Ginebra here, they’ve never faced the Gin Kings, with the Dragons’ 111-93 loss in the eliminations coming despite Nicholson scoring 28 points and grabbing 12 rebounds.

And Cone knew that the dynamic of Game 6 had changed drastically.

“We have a little time to prepare, [but] Powell is definitely going to change the way we play,” Cone said. “We’re going to have to change our defense.”

Powell played eight games for Bay Area, splitting the playoffs with Nicholson. He had a PBA career high of 50 points and was a relentless scorer from inside and outside, unlike Nicholson who used his size and weight to dominate.

Cone has reason to feel extra cautious. Ginebra, after all, was stunned by the visitors despite playing without an import with Nicholson unavailable for Game 4 and Powell still recovering.

Veteran playmaker LA Tenorio said they were caught off guard by the Bay Area’s decision to gut out the Canadian without injury, because it gave the powers of other players Kobey Lam and Glen Yang, making them assertive.

The Gin Kings can clinch the title with another victory, extending San Miguel Corp.’s dominant streak. in the pro league that started in the 2016 season.

The Dragons, meanwhile, are looking to get another playdate in the hope of maintaining their bid to become the first visiting club since the 1985 Northern Consolidated Cement team to win it all.

“We lost, we got out. It got to that point,” Bay Area coach Brian Goorjian said.

North Cement is actually a Philippine Team strengthened by naturalized players Jeff Moore and Dennis Still, but the core is a homegrown group led by the best amateurs of the time.

The first foreign visiting team to win in the PBA was Nicholas Stoodley, a talented American crop led by the prolific Larry Pounds, who went on to have a PBA career with U-Tex.

Nicholas Stoodley then swept Toyota in the best-of-three series for the title. INQ

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