E. Cow is sad right now.
Every
hoop lover’s Twitter account is
ravaged by Tim Cone’s announcement
that he is stepping down as head coach of the Alaska Aces. If I wasn’t swamped with job orders, I would have
play-by-played with all the twits I gathered. I was a fan of the squad in the
90’s when Johnny Abarrientos, Jojo
Lastimosa, and Bong Hawkins led the squad and to this day I can’t really
see the Aces minus the American mentor who looks exactly like the product’s
boy.
Easily,
this news trumps the arrival of Manny
Pacquiao’s arch-nemesis Juan Manuel Marquez.
And
for me... that’s okay.
In the
press conference, Alaska owner Wilfred
Uytengsu revealed that Tim Cone indeed asked his release from the squad.
These two have been inseparable since forever and you can frequently see them
in softball games and everyday activities. For 22 years, Cone has given his all
for making the Aces the most revered organization outside the San Miguel teams and the Pangilinan-owned squads.
But
now Tim Cone wants to explore other options and to challenge himself.
By the
way, Tim Cone was released... but he never said he retired.
Uytengsu
said that as early as last week, Cone has already approached him with this
thought. One of the greatest coaches ever produced by the league, Uytengsu has
nothing but praises for Cone who gave his squad 13 fruitful titles and a grand
slam score. With Cone’s departure, Joel
Banal will now be the new Alaska coach.
Cone
has nothing but good things to former assistant. Banal had earlier won a title
with Talk N Text in his version of a grand slam (I think this was the year his
UAAP squad, the Ateneo Blue Eagles
and his PBL squad Ateneo-Pioneer).
Cone said Joel Banal was too great of a coach to be an assistant forever and
this is the time to prove to naysayers that what he had then can still be done
today. Cone can’t really be saying that he’ll abandon his players because he’ll
be leaving his players in the willing hands of Banal.
People
are saying that Tim Cone’s release further strengthens the fact that Alaska is
losing money and might opt out of the PBA. Losing money? Here’s the thing: the
Uytengsu are one of the richest names in the country. Believing they are on the
verge of bankruptcy is stupid. Stinginess-wise though, they can be one of the
most. Online reports mouth that Alaska only gives out a bonus equivalent to one
and a half months whenever their teams win a conference. Meanwhile, other
squads get a bonus equivalent to three months when they win. The reason Joe Devance left the team is because he
wanted to have what other players are getting. Sure we can whine about a
certain amount of stars ridiculously ruining their legacy by merely riding a
team’s bench but we also need to accept that in the end, financial security
wins. This is perhaps why the team’s Mutt
and Jeff combo, presumably Sonny
Thoss and LA Tenorio, could also
be on their way out of the squad.
Being
stingy is an upside for the Aces though. For years, the imba or imbalance of
big money teams like Petron, Ginebra,
B-Meg, Talk N Text, and Meralco is screaming doom for the league. While we
are ecstatic teams like Ginebra are still fancied, people turn off their sets
when Powerade, Barako Bull, and Sta.
Lucia play. In some ways this is perhaps one of the reasons why teams like Shell, Sta. Lucia, and Red Bull folded why teams like Air21 are giving away their top stars
expecting nothing in return.
As the
world suffers from financial instability, maintaining a team with zero stars
and little rewards is like burning a buckload of dinero.
Last
season, the Alaska Aces had to give up Joe Devance and Reynel Hugnatan for Hans
Thiele and Jay-R Reyes. These
trades no less were lopsided but the Alaska management can’t do anything to
prevent it.
Uytengsu
would later quoted in Twitter saying this: “Somewhere down the road when the
situation in the PBA is that graft and corruption becomes the norm, I think
that’s the time we have to go look elsewhere because I don’t think the PBA is
going to be a viable form of entertainment anymore where individuals are
supposed to be role models for the youth”.
Alaska
is far from becoming like Red Bull or the second formation of the Tanduay Rhum Masters that were
disgruntled to the heavens because they simply can’t buy any love from the Commissioner’s Office. But the Alaska
bigwigs want the salary cap controversy to get sorted out. If you look at the
PBA website, there is no such thing as a free agent tracker.
All of
a sudden, it’s funny that Alaska has the highest recorded payroll last year.
But
perhaps Commissioner Chito Salud has
solved this by the introduction of the new unrestricted free agent system where
6-year PBA veterans are free to sign up with any team they find that can help
their superstar tag to explode.
So
what’s next for Tim Cone? Well contrary to rumors, Cone has no clue where he’ll
end up. SMC allegedly hasn’t tendered a contract and ditto for the Pangilinan
side. Cone has been adamant of the super salary these teams give out. Still the
most roaring news is Cone’s resurfacing with the B-Meg Llamados. There are other rumors that Cone will replace Rajko Toroman as Smart-Gilas coach. There are also statements running around that
Cone will coach in the UAAP.
Tim
Cone has said that he has been married to the Alaska organization longer than
he’s been married to his wife. He also said that nothing will overshadow the
relationships you build with the way Cone settled his release amicably, I will
not be surprised if this isn’t the last time we’ll see the legendary mentor
being part of the Alaska community. As much as it pains me to see him go... or
switch allegiances, the fact of the matter is that Tim Cone one of the best
ever.
Like I
said, E. Cow is sad right now.
Game
over!
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