Barangay Ginebra San Miguel aims to parade a healthy roster in its next match in the Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup.
Kings coach Tim Cone said they are hoping to have Jamie Malonzo and Scottie Thompson in their lineup when they face Terrafirma this Sunday at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.
Malonzo is still recovering from a wrist injury that he sustained in their 107-102 win over Rain or Shine while Thompson is scheduled to undergo magnetic resonance imaging after Bradwyn Guinto landed on his left knee in the second period of their 90-87 win over Blackwater last Sunday.
Aside from the scary incident, Thompson, the 2021 PBA Most Valuable Player who scored seven points in 40 minutes of action against the Bossing, also just recently recovered from an illness.
“He’s (Scottie) been battling a bad flu, cold over the past week and a half. And he just can’t shake it. But it’s not Covid. He’s got a bug that he can’t shake. I tried to give him some extended time to break,” Cone said.
“Jamie had that bad fall in Friday’s game. You can see he has a fat lip on his mouth and he hurt his wrist when he was falling. The wrist was the reason he didn’t play,” Cone said.
“We don’t play until Sunday so we are hoping that by Sunday, he should be fine and ready to go.”
Right now, the Kings are tied with Phoenix Super LPG at the second spot with a 3-1 record. A victory over the sputtering Dyip will tighten their grip on top behind unbeaten Magnolia.
Despite their shaky roster against the Bossing, Christian Standhardinger still finished with a double-double of 16 points and 12 rebounds while newly-acquired playmaker Maverick Ahanmisi dropped 20 markers.
Import Tony Bishop was also impressive, finishing with 22 points and 11 rebounds while playing airtight defense in the crucial stretch.
“That’s what it came down to. We had to lock in on defense and help out on the rebounds. I had to be physical with their import to make sure he doesn’t get his spots,” said Bishop, who replaced resident import Justin Brownlee who tested positive for a banned substance in the aftermath of the 19th Asian Games.
