AS accomplished and as experienced a coach Brian Goorjian is, the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals will be nothing like anything the Bay Area Dragons coach has experienced before.
The Australian-American coach has been all around the world coaching and has had a lot of success, having led Australia to a historic bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics aside from winning six championships in the NBL.
But the Bay Area Dragons coach revealed the best-of-seven finals against Barangay Ginebra that tips off on Christmas Day will be the first of his career.
[READ: Nicholson, not Powell, will be Bay Area import in finals]
“I’ve been in the game a long time. Never in the NBA. But I’ve never been involved in a seven-game series,” said Goorjian.
“Five [games] in Australia. In Europe, it’s best-of-three. Every now and then, I’ve been involved in a best-of-five. But never a best-of-seven. So, great opportunity and just really proud to be in there and have a battle in our hands,” he said.
The 69-year-old mentor said he has learned from his players past and present, including Dragons import Andrew Nicholson, about the NBA and how those teams and players handle winning and losing in a long series.
“This man (Nicholson) taught me something about the NBA. I’ve never coached in the NBA. [What you do is] enjoy until midnight, lose or win. If you win, enjoy. If you lose, put that behind after midnight. So I’m going to have a few drinks. And when midnight hits, I’m going to be on the next series,” said Goorjian.
Goorjian will definitely hope that what he has learned enough about the PBA and its brand of play to do well against Barangay Ginebra in the finals.
“Nothing but respect for Tim Cone and nothing but respect for that team," he said. "They dominated the semifinals. They dominated the quarters. They dominated the finish in the season of the season. They dominated us the first time they played us."
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