Ginebra is bracing for the possibility of a last-minute game plan tweak heading into Game Four of its PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals series with Bay Area.
The Kings will now wait for word from the league on whether or not the Dragons will bring back Myles Powell. This, after Andrew Nicholson fell down with a left ankle injury in the waning seconds of their Game Three encounter on Wednesday night.
Replays showed that the veteran big man landed on the foot of Jamie Malonzo with 35 seconds left to play. Following that, he had to be aided on the way to the dugout.
The guest team lost, 89-82, but the uncertainty surrounding Nicholson’s availability might deal more pain to Brian Goorjian’s wards. Nicholson left the Mall of Asia Area in a wheelchair, with staff taking him to the hospital.
“We’ll try to be prepared for anything,” Cone said during the postgame press conference. “I guess we won’t know until, like, 5 o’clock tomorrow afternoon, if Nicholson can play or whether Powell will be changing him.
“If that’s the case, it’s gonna change their game, and it’s gonna have to change the way we play our defense,” added the 24-time champion mentor.
Before going down, Nicholson was doing his part in warding off the Kings’ rally from 14 down. He left the game with 23 points and 24 rebounds.
The former NBA cager has been Bay Area’s import since the start of the playoffs. However, he may have to take a backseat once again in the event the ball club from Hong Kong decides to bring in Powell heading into Friday’s match.
Cone, though, hopes that Nicholson suffered nothing serious. He even sang praises for the character the 33-year-old Canadian possesses.
“He’s not only a good player, but he’s also a good person. I don’t want any ill will on Andrew,” said the 65-year-old bench tactician.
“He is a real credit to their team and he’s a great representative for that team here in the Philippines. I hope he can continue to play, I hope he can battle through that injury,” furthered Cone.
“I hope he’s healthy, I hope it was just a tweak, and he can continue to play. He’s really massively good. Really, massively good.”
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The second game of each PBA gameday is live-streamed on SMART Sports.
