LUIGI Trillo and Nenad Vucinic proved that a head coach and active consultant in the PBA can’t just coexist, but also taste success after steering Meralco to its first-ever league championship in the 2024 Philippine Cup.
What’s the secret to their harmonious relationship?
Apparently a handful of shouting matches in practices early on when Vucinic returned in early 2023 to take on a more active role on the Bolts coaching staff after leaving briefly due to an uncertain situation with Gilas Pilipinas.
READ Cool dad Luigi Trillo on daughter Rocio dating Bolts rookie Bates
Trillo bared having some disagreements that they eventually worked on and toughened their bond.
“In fairness with us, it wasn’t an easy road going there. There was a lot of tough practices. There was a lot of questions we asked,” Trillo said on the Locked Down podcast on Sports Beat PH.
“I got into it with him a couple of times,” he added. “Like really a couple of times. Yeah (sigawan), right there. But I think we respected each other after a while na, okay, after that, we’re out for the best of each other.”
Trillo recalled opposing Vucinic’s grueling practice style and wanting to take time to see progress in the Bolts by letting Trillo call the shots in the PBA on Tour preseason tournament.
“When we would run practices, he would kill them the first time,” Trillo said. “And I’ve seen some coaches like coach [Rajko] Toroman and some of the other guys where they’ve had strong teams like San Miguel and they also got injured. He wanted to really drill them into that.”
“And he was making me coach the PBA on Tour,” he added. “But I could see what he was trying to say. But for us as Pinoy coaches kasi, it’s different. You have to win. It’s not enough that you develop.”
“If you’re like 0-10, and I’ve been there before when I started with Adamson, you have to build. So for me as a coach, whether it’s a practice game, whether it’s a tuneup game, whether it’s a real game, you try your best to win the game, right?” he continued.
But Trillo and Vucinic eventually saw eye to eye and figured out how to complement each other.
“Sometimes we would have those tough discussions. And after a while, we backed off a bit and we kinda realized na after that, it doesn’t mean that I don’t love him or he doesn’t respect me, and we’re not together.”
Trillo understands the pressure the Serbian-Kiwi mentor is carrying.
“I think it’s so easy for, ako, local coach, ‘di ba and there’s one foreigner, wherever you are in the world, and I’m sure he’s felt that, where when you don’t start winning, you’re out. You’re not from here eh,” Trillo said.
READ How Nenad went from leaving Gilas to winning PBA title at Meralco
“I think 'yung maganda dun, we showed our character when the chips were down. Kasi when we were 1-3, 3-5, the players could’ve given up on us. We could’ve given up on each other … But EASL trips, out-of-town trips, debates, him giving me my space, and now me giving him his space, and timing on when we come in, I think that’s really hard to do,” he added.
And it’s not just with Vucinic. Trillo admitted having arguments with stars Chris Newsome, Cliff Hodge, and Allein Maliksi, who have all eventually gotten on the same page to lead the Bolts’ breakthrough championship.
“I’ve had tough discussions with New, with Cliff sometimes, Allein during the pandemic. I think those things have to happen, because if you genuinely care about something, you will speak your mind,” Trillo said.
“You don’t want to be just a ‘Yes Coach’ rin. That’s what I’m most proud about, kasi kami yung first na (tandem) na nanalo,” he added.
The result allowed Vucinic to become the first foreign consultant to achieve the feat in PBA history after predecessors Ron Jacobs, Bill Bayno, Paul Woolpert, John Moran, Todd Purves, Rajko Toroman, Tab Baldwin, and Mark Dickel fell short.
Rising above the disagreements within his team and the negative comments online, the 49-year-old Trillo, who’s 10 years younger than Vucinic, is proud to make a tricky partnership work.
“Sometimes I see things on social media, I hear things from my kids and that’s tough that they see it, but people don’t realize how hard it is to coach and find a way to put an imprint. People won’t see, it could be a text, could be a motivating thing, could be talking to a player, could be a video. All of those work hand-in-hand,” Trillo said.
“At the end of the day, coach Nenad really doesn’t care. I’m younger. He’s at an age where he’s accomplished so much. And I’ve also grown to ano that we don’t care who gets the accolades, because we’re winning. We all get it,” he added.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
