On Coach Tim Cone Joining The Barangay

For the past week, rumors has been swirling around that Ginebra is changing its coach yet again. The man at the center of the talks is multi-titled coach Tim Cone. Initially, my reaction was shock and disbelief. It was unlikely for Tim to leave Purefoods after the success he had with the team culminated by his second Grand Slam as a coach. 

Then I came across this tweet:

FireNathanielsz @FireNathanielsz
IF my source is correct, Cone to Ginebra is true. Just need a greenlight from RSA. Big IF though

Then reality struck me. Is it really true? The winningest coach in the PBA and owner of two Grand Slams with two different teams will replace Frankie Lim as head coach of Ginebra for next season. Different news articles from various sources further fueled this rumor. 

In one of the articles, Coach Tim himself said "I serve at the pleasure of Mr. Ramon Ang. Whatever direction he takes me, I will follow"  which all the more confirmed the likelihood of the transfer. Soon this news was all over the social media in both Twitter and Facebook. According to the rumor, Coach Tim moves to Ginebra while Jason Webb will take over the Hotshots. 

Although there is still no confirmation until Tuesday, this is a huge development for Barangay Ginebra. The Maestro himself as head coach of the most popular team. He brings his success to a franchise that has been without a title for 8 years. More importantly, Tim Cone is someone who can bring out the full potential of the Twin Towers of Greg Slaughter and Japeth Aguilar. 

But then there are some questions that need to be answered: "Will they thrive in the triangle offense?" They have tried this already when Jeffrey Cariaso became their coach. After only one conference, Jeff was booted out as he reportedly had some disagreements with some of the players. But if there is one coach who knows how to deflate ego, it is Coach Tim Cone. 

Coach Tim has the number of Barangay Ginebra. He has a 17 - 9 record against the most popular team. Can the Ginebra players bury the hatchet and work harmoniously with Cone? For the sake of winning another championship, they need to and they must. 

For the meantime, we are all in a wait and see attitude as to where this new development will take Ginebra if it does materialize.