MANILA, Philippines – Barangay Ginebra head coach Tim Cone quickly caught up with the reality of having the No. 10 pick in the PBA Draft.
Cone said it is a challenge to focus on the players the Gin Kings have a chance of getting instead of being fascinated by the top prospects as he attended the PBA Draft Combine at the Ynares Arena on Thursday, July 11.
Back in PBA duty after guiding Gilas Pilipinas to a semifinal finish in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament, Cone caught a glimpse of the rookie hopefuls bannered by consensus top picks Justine Baltazar and Kai Ballungay.
“You’re watching these guys play and they draw your attention, they draw your eyes, and we know we’re not getting any of them,” said Cone about the likes of 6-foot-7 Baltazar and 6-foot-6 Ballungay.
“We have to have the discipline to not look at them and look at the other guys.”
Make no mistake, though, Cone believes players who will be selected in the first round all have something to offer, with the likes of Sedrick Barefield, RJ Abarrientos, Dave Ildefonso, and Jonnel Policarpio giving the draft depth.
“It is going to be a very strong first round,” said Cone. “I think there is going to be 12 players in that draft that can really impact the league.”
“A lot of teams are going to be happy about their picks.”
Seeking to guide Ginebra back to its winning ways after the team failed to make the finals last season, Cone has his sights on a big man or a point guard to reinforce their injury-riddled roster.
Choosing a point guard at No. 10 is seemingly a solution to the Gin Kings’ crippled backcourt, with former MVP Scottie Thompson out with a back injury that prevented him from seeing action in the OQT.
“We’re always coming to a draft looking for a big guy, but it does not look like there is anyone available in terms of just a pure big man outside of Justine,” said Cone.
“Now, we’ll turn our attention to the best available athlete,” he added. “If there is a good point guard available at No. 10, we’ll go after him. We just have to wait and see who drops to us.”
Cone and his staff also hope to find “jewels” in the second round as Ginebra owns the No. 17 and 22 picks.
“It is more than just seeing them in the Combine, you got to do more research than that, you got to see where they’re coming from,” Cone said. “You need to take a deeper look at those guys, a deeper dive.”
“We’ll take whoever drops to us in the first and then we’ll look more in the second round at this point.”
Draft day is on Sunday, July 14, at Glorietta in Makati City. – Rappler.com
