TIM Cone, the coach that nearly ended Marc Pingris’ stint with the Purefoods franchise years ago, on Twitter paid tribute to his former player who announced his retirement on Monday night, calling him his favorite player.
The Barangay Ginebra coach joined Pingris’ colleagues in looking back at his career that includes a four-year stint with the Purefoods franchise from 2011 to 2015 where he played under Cone.
“End of an era,” Cone wrote. “Certainly one of a kind. I loved, in every way, coaching Ping. Tough as nails on the court and gentle in spirit off it.”
Pingris retired after 16 years, the last 11 of which under the Purefoods franchise but that could have been a different story had a trade he asked for pushed through, a request he made in the early part of Cone’s stay with the team when he was introducing the triangle offense to the club.
Their relationship, however, turned for the better, and in his retirement post he penned on Instagram, Pingris made special mention of Cone, saying, “grew to understand the sport as more than a game.” He also thanked Cone for helping him become part of history when the Mixers captured the grand slam in 2014.
The admiration and respect between Cone and Pingris is mutual.
“@MPingris15 will be the standard from which I coach future players. My fav,” Cone added.
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