The chances of San Miguel winning their fifth straight PBA Philippine Cup championship just got higher after they acquired Terrence Romeo, Paul Zamar and Ronald Tubid via multiple trades in the offseason.
Several players and coaches from the other ball clubs have said that the rest of them are all just “fighting for second place” as the Beermen added more firepower to their already formidable roster. However, a lot can happen during the course of a conference and all the teams are certainly aware of that as they gear up for the upcoming 44th season of the PBA.
Here, FOX Sports PH breaks down which teams can pull out an upset and derail San Miguel’s “Drive for Five”.
Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings
Legendary head coach Tim Cone said it best when he was asked about his team’s ability to compete against the Beermen: “I think that we’re one of the few teams that match up well with San Miguel. We take away a few things that they normally get from other teams, and we have a couple of guys that can match up with June Mar (Fajardo) and Christian Standhardinger.”
This was on full display when the two teams met in last year’s Commissioner’s Cup Finals. Although Barangay Ginebra’s import Justin Brownlee was a big factor when they dethroned San Miguel and won the championship, it was their defense, particularly on June Mar Fajardo, that really spelled the difference. The Gin Kings didn’t have to double team the four-time MVP with Greg Slaughter holding his own. Even though Fajardo still had monster numbers, the Beermen’s shooting numbers suffered especially from beyond the arc as Barangay Ginebra’s guards and forwards were able to stay home on their gunners.
With the Philippine Cup looming, the Gin Kings would have to duplicate the feat this time without the services of Brownlee. However, the 21-time champion coach is confident of their chances as they are going in with a healthy lineup. “The good news is we’re healthy. Greg is healthy, Japeth is healthy, as long as those guys stay healthy, we’re gonna be competitive,” he said.
Magnolia Hotshots
Most coaches tabbed Magnolia as one of the teams that could seriously challenge San Miguel for the Philippine Cup crown this year, and for good reason. The Hotshots just won their first title under head coach Chito Victolero last conference, and they are the only team aside from the Gin Kings that won at least one game against the Beermen in each conference last season.
While Magnolia doesn’t have a tall frontline like Barangay Ginebra, they have a collection of pesky guards in Mark Barroca, Jio Jalalon and Justin Melton that could give Alex Cabagnot, Chris Ross and Terrence Romeo fits on the defensive end. They excel in disrupting passing lanes, providing ball pressure and forcing turnovers on the opposing guards. It also helps that they have one of the best closers in the league in Paul Lee.
Rebounding and shot blocking has always been a concern for the Hotshots last season and they would have to improve on t
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