The destiny of the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Gin Kings will once again rest on the versatility and leaderships of Justin Brownlee and Scottie Thompson.
Coach Tim Cone believes this as the Gin Kings head into Game 6 of their best-of-seven final series with the Meralco Bolts shooting for the Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup title at 6 p.m. Friday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
When the two played their usual games, the Gin Kings were able to grab the lead in the series at 3-2 following their 115-110 Easter Sunday triumph at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.
“Justin was doing Justin things, and Scottie was doing Scottie things. The value that they bring with their all-around game is amazing,” said Cone now that Ginebra is close to claiming the crown with a second consecutive finals’ victory.
Brownlee, the season’s best import, has made a difference with his averages of 28.64 points and 10.45 rebounds. And so has Thompson with his norms of 12.82 points and 9.45 boards.
The Gin Kings will be a well-rested unit going into their encounter with the Bolts.
This was after the postponement of Game 6 last Tuesday gave the Gin Kings, and even the Bolts, ample time to rest and recover from their weekend encounter.
Tuesday’s game was called off after thick smoke lingered on inside the Araneta Coliseum hours after firefighters put out a fire at the Big Dome second floor.