TNT expects Troy Rosario to be out for the remainder of the month as he has yet to fully recover from injuries sustained in the PBA Philippine Cup Finals against Magnolia Pambansang Manok last October.
Coach Chot Reyes confirmed the timetable despite Rosario showing up in uniform for the Tropang Giga’s first two games of the Governors’ Cup, including an 81-77 win over Alaska Friday, Dec. 17 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“Mga January pa si Troy,” Reyes said. “He’s still far from recovering from the injuries that he suffered in the Finals.”
Rosario suffered a spinal shock and a dislocated finger stemming from a bad fall that came after being bumped by Magnolia’s Jackson Corpuz during Game 3 of the Philippine Cup title series at the Don Honorio Ventura State University in Bacolor, Pampanga.
The versatile big man would play the rest of the series, helping TNT beat Magnolia in five games.
He is not the only Tropang Giga dealing with an injury to begin the season-ending conference.
Backup guard Kib Montalbo, a revelation last conference, is out after undergoing meniscal repair, while import McKenzie Moore is dealing with jumper’s knee.
“The value, the contribution of those guys are hard to quantify. So we just have to make do without them,” Reyes said.
Reyes, however, is glad that Glenn Khobuntin was able to step up with 16 points off the bench for TNT.
“It’s a good thing Glenn is playing really well,” said the TNT mentor. “I thought he played well also in the last game even if we lost. Hopefully they can cover what we're missing with Troy.”