The NLEX Road Warriors are rip-roaring their way to the top of the PBA Governors’ Cup and fans are now wondering if they’re capable of going the extra mile.
Last conference, the Road Warriors were at a similar situation, securing the top seed ahead of the playoffs, carrying a twice-to-beat advantage, but lost to big sister team, TNT Tropang 5G, reinforced by one of the tallest imports ever to play in the PBA – Bol Manute Bol – and the team became the latest top-seed squad to be eliminated, joining teams such as Mobiline (1999 All-Filipino) and B-Meg (2011-2012 Philippine Cup) among others.
The Road Warriors were no stranger to situations of being a top-seeded team, whose campaign ended in a whimper.
Aside from last conference’s playoff setback at the hands of the Tropang 5G, the Road Warriors also experienced a similar defeat against the NorthPort Batang Pier when they lost twice in a row in the quarterfinal round of the 2019 Governors’ Cup.
But with Jimmy Alapag on board, NLEX is hoping to flip the script this time and Ronald Dulatre, the amiable team executive and board governor of the Road Warriors, believes their time is now.
"We have a different look now -- more cohesive -- with the new system injected by Coach Jimmy, and slowly but surely, we're getting into what we wanted to be," wrote Dulatre in a text message to The Manila Times.
"But our situation is different now. No. 1 seed vs No. 4. It's different because it's now a best-of-five series. We hope we can overcome it this time and take ourselves to the next level."
Alapag was just what the doctor ordered to revitalize the Road Warriors and immediately in his maiden conference as a PBA coach, the Gilas Pilipinas legend and one of the all-time best players ever to play in the league brought his winning ways.
As of this writing, NLEX carries a tournament-best 9-2 mark in Group A and is looking to wrap up its group stage elimination campaign as the No.1 seed and arrange a quarterfinal round duel with the No.4 squad in Group B.
Nobody doubted Alapag’s capability as a player, but he knows he has a lot to prove as a new head coach in the big league, but as cerebral as he was when he was on the playing court, the Mighty Mouse was up to the task and stamped his class on the sidelines.
The years of being an understudy of Chot Reyes with Gilas Pilipinas and the great opportunity of being a part of the Sacramento Kings to become a member of their coaching staff, focusing on skills development, had certainly prepared him for the bigger task ahead.
Now, this newbie is ready to exchange wits and skills with the best basketball tacticians in the land – from his long-time mentor Reyes, Tim Cone, the winningest coach in the PBA, seven-time champion mentor Yeng Guiao and San Miguel Beer’s most decorated coach Leo Austria.
Curiously, Alapag’s best player turned out to be a point guard as well – Robert Bolick – who plays much like an extension of one of the best long-range bombers, who at one time held the record for the most number of three-point shots and eclipsed the mark of previous record holder, The Trigger Man Alan Caidic.
The record for the all-time three-point shots made no longer belongs to him as he was surpassed by marcio Lassiter, but Alapag wants to make a new mark in the coaching circuit and that is to be recognized as one of best bench tacticians today, and hopefully, if he could take NLEX to the next level, become the latest coach to win a championship in his first conference as head mentor.
For now, Alapag doesn’t want to look far ahead.
They have a remaining game left in the elimination round and that’s a big one, against the San Miguel Beermen on October 21.
How far can the Road Warriors go remains uncertain at this stage, but things look a lot more promising with Alapag in tow.
Never mind the record. We all can learn our lessons from past defeats. What matters most is what’s in front of them and Alapag, Bolick and the rest of the Road Warriors are bracing for a very challenging journey ahead.
