Jamie Malonzo is itching to play in the PBA Finals again after sitting helplessly on the sidelines during Barangay Ginebra’s previous trip to the Big Dance.
The young winger can’t wait to battle against TNT in their upcoming best-of-7 bout for the Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup crown after his Kings bowed to their long-time rivals in the Governors’ Cup finale last November.
“Sayang. I wanted to play really bad,” he said moments after their ouster of NorthPort in Game 5 of the semis Friday at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
Malonzo was reduced to a spectator during that championship series as he was still recovering from a calf injury he suffered back in April of last year.
There, the 28-year-old could only watch Ginebra fall to Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and the Tropang Giga anew in six games — and fail to reclaim the Governors’ Cup trophy they lost back in 2023 against the very same squad.
Still, Malonzo came away with a clearer assessment of how he could help the Kings better had he been on the floor from his vantage point on the bench, and that should come in handy in the upcoming Finals.
“It’s always tough. But just being able to sit on the bench, you can see where you can impact the game,” he said. “And I think once you put all these pieces together, I think we got a good shot at competing for a title, hopefully.”
Malonzo has grown confident entering his first Finals since the 2023 Governors’ Cup, and that’s because of reps he got during the recent semis.
There, he averaged 17.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 2.2 assists to help the crowd darlings accomplish the gentleman’s sweep against the no.1 seed.
“I feel good,” said Malonzo, who starred in Game 3 with 25 points. “NorthPort likes to run, so I was able to get my breath, lose some pounds, and yeah, it was good to get a good wind out there and just prepare for the Finals, of course.”
Making it an even more impressive semis for the former second overall pick was his solid shooting. He converted 58.8-percent of his field goals, and Malonzo is hoping that he can sustain his rhythm come the Finals that starts March 14.
“I don’t know, I’m shooting the ball really well,” he marveled. “It’s gotta be over 50, 60, somewhere up there high. That’s always good going into a tough match-up like this, so I just hope I can keep it up, to be honest.”
