Aguilar gets chance to 'feel' the game in return, says Cone
Published Apr 15, 2023 06:27 am
Japeth Aguilar successfully returned from a knee injury although it was only for a brief time on the floor, just to give him the feels of the game according to Barangay Ginebra head coach Tim Cone.
Aguilar checked in at the 8:59 mark of the second quarter and went on to play for almost five minutes with two points and a rebound to show in the Kings' 117-103 Game 3 win over TNT and reclaim a 2-1 series lead in the PBA Governors Cup finals. Cone said he just tried to give Aguilar some playing time as the status of the 6-foot-9 forward is still being assessed after sitting out Ginebra’s campaign since February when he was sidelined by a medial collateral ligament (MCL) sprain on his knee. “The goal is to go out and give Japeth a feel, give him a couple of minutes, trying to find a time when we can do that,” Cone said of Aguilar, who will remain in a minute restriction in the upcoming games. Aguilar looked good on his first game back, drilling a jumper from the baseline, although it was obvious that his usual hops and explosiveness was still not there as he tries to find his rhythm back. “Japeth hit that jumper from the baseline, and you can tell, he’s not really explosive at the moment but he’s still building to it so hopefully, maybe next game we can extend the minutes out a little bit more,” said Cone. As for whether Aguilar would get back to his usual minutes, the Ginebra coach said the team is taking extra precaution. It’s also unlikely that the Kings will be forced to utilize Aguilar given with the impressive performance so far from Best Player of the Conference frontrunner Christian Standhardinger. “Whether he’s gonna go back to his normal minutes in this series, I’m not sure, I don't think so. But we’ll continue to give him minutes hopefully and monitor how he does and finally decide if he can get more and more or do we have to pull back again,” he added. *(SONNY DAANOY, OJT)*
*Japeth Aguilar (left) returns from a knee injury during Game 3 of the Finals (PBA Images)
*Aguilar checked in at the 8:59 mark of the second quarter and went on to play for almost five minutes with two points and a rebound to show in the Kings' 117-103 Game 3 win over TNT and reclaim a 2-1 series lead in the PBA Governors Cup finals. Cone said he just tried to give Aguilar some playing time as the status of the 6-foot-9 forward is still being assessed after sitting out Ginebra’s campaign since February when he was sidelined by a medial collateral ligament (MCL) sprain on his knee. “The goal is to go out and give Japeth a feel, give him a couple of minutes, trying to find a time when we can do that,” Cone said of Aguilar, who will remain in a minute restriction in the upcoming games. Aguilar looked good on his first game back, drilling a jumper from the baseline, although it was obvious that his usual hops and explosiveness was still not there as he tries to find his rhythm back. “Japeth hit that jumper from the baseline, and you can tell, he’s not really explosive at the moment but he’s still building to it so hopefully, maybe next game we can extend the minutes out a little bit more,” said Cone. As for whether Aguilar would get back to his usual minutes, the Ginebra coach said the team is taking extra precaution. It’s also unlikely that the Kings will be forced to utilize Aguilar given with the impressive performance so far from Best Player of the Conference frontrunner Christian Standhardinger. “Whether he’s gonna go back to his normal minutes in this series, I’m not sure, I don't think so. But we’ll continue to give him minutes hopefully and monitor how he does and finally decide if he can get more and more or do we have to pull back again,” he added. *(SONNY DAANOY, OJT)*