CHICAGO - A PBA team manager is a high-profile, high-paying position that comes with unique perks and some measure of celebrity.
But it's easy not to envy TNT's Jojo Lastimosa.
Not only is he under pressure, 24 hours a day, to sustain the excellence at the signature franchise of the MVP group, he barely has time to enjoy a championship.
READ TNT looking to add another point guard ahead of Grand Slam bid
Moments after TNT annexed the Commissioner's Cup crown last Friday at the expense of Ginebra in a hard-fought seven-game brawl, Jolas was already plotting the next move.
"I'm hoping that, itong coming na conference, I can swing some deals na magdala ng point guard. So that's my immediately plan actually," he told Reuben Terrrado of SPIN.ph.
I know what you're thinking. Mikey Williams, right?
EXORCISING MIKEY'S GHOSTS.
After all, TNT owns his rights, and the disgruntled star is open to a return given that he hasn't played organized professional basketball for almost the entire 23 months since he walked away from the league.
That potential reunion will only happen in a fantasy league.
"Mikey's not an option. Need to look elsewhere," a TNT official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told me on Saturday.
There's no denying the all-purpose guard's talent and value as a serial scorer, but after months of futile negotiations, the issue has come to a point where the slight outweighs the might of the two-time Finals MVP.
Plus, the two championships won without him made the Fil-Am from California expandable, a distant, fading memory.
The team's priority right now is to provide a suitable back-up for the newly minted Finals MVP Rey Nambatac who was thrust into the starting role following the patellar tendon tear sustained by Jayson Castro.
BACKING UP THE BACK-UP.
With more usage than a Swiss knife, "Sting Rey" averaged 17.8 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.4 assists versus Ginebra, but there were harrowing stretches where it was evident the Tropang Giga hungered for an extra ball carrier.
So, who's TNT going to get?
Former San Miguel ace Simon Enciso, I am told, is an option.
READ Enciso weighs options as he turns unrestricted free agent
"He is a free agent, a veteran with no ego. He won't complain if he plays for five or 20 minutes. And he has two rings to his name." said a source who also revealed that the 34-year-old Fil-Am is drawing interest from other teams.
Enciso suiting up for TNT against his former team in the Philippine Cup, also known as the June Mar Fajardo conference, makes good television.
Enoch Valdez could get a look, but the ability to pry him from a sister team, a move that will require a three-team cooperation, is a potential drawback.
Jolas has made one great decision after another since taking over the helm. There's no doubt he'll make another one with a grand slam bid on the horizon.
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