THE off-season and the coming PBA rookie Draft set for Sept. 7 hardly excite Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao.
Except for the marquee acquisition of veteran playmaker Stanley Pringle last week, the Painters are not keen on tweaking their roster due to the anticipated return of injured players Beau Belga, Luis Villegas, and Felix Pangilinan-Lemetti.
Add to that no prized cager has yet to throw his name on the annual proceedings, which explains why Guiao is not hot on making big moves these days.
“Hindi naman iyong sobrang busy kasi sa tingin ko, hindi naman kailangan ng malaking overhaul ang team. Ang importante rin sa amin, makabalik si Beau, makapaglaro si Luis, and then makabalik si Felix,” Guiao said.
“Kahit nga iyong Draft, dahil wala pa kami nakikitaan na talagang solid na pangalan, lalo na iyong pick namin is towards the end or towards the tail end of the first round.
“So, hindi pa rin namin puwedeng gamitin iyon na punuan iyong kulang namin. Sa tingin ko, baka hindi ganoon kalalim iyong draft natin ngayon,” he added.
Coming off three straight semifinal stints in the 49th season, Rain or Shine signed Pringle from free agency to a two-year deal to bolster its backcourt play.
Guiao is convinced the prolific Pringle, 38, should prop up his wards’ bid to finally get over the hump and end a nine-year title dry spell.
The one-time Best Player of the Conference, former No. 1 pick overall, and four-time champion’s familiarity with Guiao’s system after he saw action for Gilas Pilipinas before will also come in handy.
“Malaking bagay iyong experience ni Stanley lalo na to a young team like us,” Guiao said. “May asim pa iyan. May asim pang mapipiga diyan. Naglaro na siya under me sa Gilas. So, kabisado niya na rin naman ako.”
Now Pringle and the rest of his new teammates will have to put in the work for the pro league’s golden season slated to kick off on Oct. 5.
