TIM CONE has started to make his presence felt at Barangay Ginebra San Miguel.
Cone, a two-time Grand Slam coach, tinkered with the Kings lineup to come up with the balance he wanted. He unloaded the team of its guards by sending Emman Monfort, Jens Knuttel and Josh Urbiztondo to Barako Bull.
In return, Cone got former Ateneo Blue Eagle Nico Salva and a 2016 first-round pick. The trade was approved by the Philippine Basketball Association on Tuesday.
The departure of the three guards leave LA Tenorio, Jayjay Helterbrand and rookie Scottie Thompson, their No. 5 overall pick, as the team’s playmakers.
And Cone said Salva would fit nicely to his vaunted triangle offense.
“We’ve been looking for a versatile wing and Nico (Salva) fits that role nicely,” Cone told BusinessMirror. “He also knows Greg [Slaughter] from his Ateneo days so that’s a bonus.”
Salva and Slaughter were teammates in two of the Blue Eagles title runs in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines.
Cone also gave Ginebra fans something to look forward to in next year’s Rookie Draft, where the likes of Kiefer Ravena, Bobby Parks, Arnold Van Opstal and Kevin Ferrer will be there for the picking.
“Ginebra has traded much of its future pick, so to get one back was important,” Cone said of the first-round pick they got from the Energy.
Nos. 1 and 2 picks Moala Tautuaa and Troy Rosario, meanwhile, officially signed three-year maximum deals each with Talk ‘N Text on Thursday. Each deal is worth P8.55 million.
Tautuaa and Rosario will receive P150,000 a month in their first year, P225,000 on the second year and P337,500 on the final year of the contract.
Three players from the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) also got tender offers from their respective teams but could only sign deals after the season.
Ginebra offered Thompson a three-year maximum deal for a rookie, Art dela Cruz was given a two-year offer from Blackwater, while Kevin Racal had a three-year tender offer from Alaska.
Thompson is still campaigning for University of Perpetual Help Dalta in the NCAA where he is the reigning Most Valuable Player. Dela Cruz is playing for defending champion San Beda College and Racal is one of Letran’s enforcers.
De la Cruz will get P150,000 a month on his first year and P180,000 on his second year. Racal’s tender offer is worth more than P3 million.