Teams gear up for Governors’ Cup | The Manila Times

THE PBA Governors' Cup is set to begin on July 10 and we have seen different teams winning the first two conferences this season.

San Miguel Beer dominated the Philippine Cup but found itself plummeting in the just-concluded Commissioner’s Cup after being ushered to the exit door by Rain or Shine in the quarterfinal round.

Barangay Ginebra, which fell short against the Beermen in the semifinal round of the Philippine Cup, bounced back strong with a rejuvenated Justin Brownlee and a vastly-improved RJ Abarrientos. Both players were the top performers in the Commissioner’s Cup, winning the Best Import and Best Player of the Conference award on top of propelling the Gin Kings’ return to the throne.

As for TNT, the runner-up in the first two conferences, the bridesmaid finishes are not an indication that the team isn’t capable of winning the big one. In fact, the Tropang 5G are the most consistent ball club in the past two seasons as they’ve been in the championship round in all conferences and winning two titles.

A quick evaluation would tell that TNT has become the barometer of success, becoming a consistent fixture of making it to the last dance in five straight tournaments.

But how about Rain or Shine and Meralco?

The Elasto Painters had been in the semifinal round five times in the last six conferences while the Bolts made their way back to the Final Four in two consecutive tournaments in between balancing their roles of being the country’s lone representative in the East Asia Super League and the Basketball Champions League Asia.

Reaching the championship round is the next objective of Rain or Shine and Meralco.

The Bolts were able to experience being a champion, winning their first and only title so far two years ago when they upset the powerhouse Beermen in six games of their best-of-seven title series in the Philippine Cup.

Rain or Shine, on the other hand, is on a decade-long title drought.

A lot of things happened in the last 10 years for this organization.

Yeng Guiao, the coach who guided the franchise in winning its two league titles, is on his third year as a returning mentor, six years after serving as general manager and coach of the NLEX Road Warriors.

Guiao is trying to weave that old magic and slowly but surely, the team had been showing signs of progress, doing clever ways of competing against the powerhouse, big-budgeted teams not just on the court, but also in acquiring players.

Seeing no chance of winning of getting players in the free-agent market, Rain or Shine has made investment in the Rookie Draft, and their young players had been providing them of that youthful energy to go along with the emerging stars on the squad like Adrian Nocum, Jhonard Clarito, Gian Mamuyac, Andrei Caracut and Leonard Santillan.

Players like Luis Villegas has just returned from the injury list while veteran Stanley Pringle might be able to join them and play his first full conference with the squad.

Of course, the chances of the expected playoff contenders depend heavily on the import.

Brownlee, now making a strong case as the PBA’s Greatest Import of All Time, will be returning for another tour of duty with Ginebra and making a team instant contender.

San Miguel will pin its hopes on George King, who previously saw action for the Blackwater Bossing a few years ago while Rain or Shine brought back old reliable Aaron Fuller, more determined to take the Elasto Painters’ first finals stint in 10 years.

Meralco tapped a player who is no stranger to its system, Jordon Varnado, who played for the team in the BCL last year.

Ginebra, TNT and San Miguel Beer are the obvious title favorites, while Rain or Shine and Meralco appeared to be the dark horses, and how well the other teams can respond, most notably NLEX, which has a new coach calling the shots in Jimmy Alapag. And then there’s Magnolia, Converge, Phoenix, Blackwater, Titan Ultra, Terrafirma and guest team Macau Giant Pandas.