BARANGAY Ginebra coach Tim Cone said TNT’s playoff seeding doesn’t reflect how good the team actually is as the two multi-titled teams face off again in the PBA 50th Season Commissioner’s Cup Finals.
Cone said he already expected the Tropang 5G to make it back to the finals even after they made it to the quarterfinals as the eighth and last seed.
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“I said that when we played them and beat them in the eliminations in a non-bearing game, and they were going to be the eighth seed, I said at that point that I’ll be the most surprised person in the room if they don’t make the finals and we don’t see them again in the playoffs,” said Cone during Monday’s pre-finals press conference at the Novotel.
TNT reached the finals for the fifth consecutive conference after the ousted top-seed NLEX by overcoming a twice-to-win disadvantage before putting away fourth-ranked Meralco in six semifinal games.
“Eighth or (any seed), the fact that they are a championship team and they have been to the finals four consecutive times before now doesn’t surprise me that all that they are here as the eighth seed,” said Cone.
Chris McCullough’s entry at TNT to replace the injured Bol Bol has even made the Tropang 5G a formidable core, Cone added.
“They're really starting to hit their stride,” he said. “And then Bol Bol went down during the playoffs, and they brought in a guy who knows how to win in this league, he is familiar with the league, he’s been a former Best Import awardee, and he looks like he is a really, really good fit.”
“We are just looking at that team, and again, we are not surprised. They know how to win championships,” he added.
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