LA Tenorio likens Magnolia vets' adjustments to a new 'love life'. Here's why
At A Glance
- In fact, he was the first to admit that the Hotshots are still struggling with their adjustments.
Magnolia head coach LA Tenorio understands his team wasn’t playing well.
But he was far from being worried, knowing it’s only a matter of time for his team, particularly his veteran players, to finally get used to what they are doing.
Tenorio even likened their situation to a man entering a new love life after a long-term relationship suddenly ended.
“They’re struggling. No doubt. Everyone is struggling. Not only our vets. Parang ano lang yan eh. Parang bagong relationship. Nagkaroon ng seven, eight years na relationship all of a sudden, nag-iba di ba,” said the young coach after his team’s 85-70 win over Terrafirma.
The 41-year-old mentor was simply referring to the level of adjustments his team needs to do under the new system especially after playing under previous coach Chito Victolero for a long time.
“Ngayon nag-aadjust sila, ‘di ba, ulit? Masakit para sa kanila iyon kaya nag-struggle sila. Tama ‘di ba. So parang ganoon lang ‘yon,” he added laughing at his own analogy.
Tenorio, however, is confident that the Hotshots would eventually find the winning combination. And their back-to-back wins after a 0-3 start surely is a step toward
the right direction.“They are not used to that kind of system. Wala pa yung habit na gusto ko ipagawa sa kanila. But they are really trying their best sa sistema na gusto ko ipagawa sa kanila,” Tenorio said of his vets Ian Sangalang, Paul Lee and Mark Barroca.
But that is not to say that he lost the faith of his veterans. It was the other way around.
“They're going to get their time. They earn that,” he added.
Lee started the game for the first time this conference and finished with eight points, four steals and three assists while Barroca added five points, five rebounds and nine assists. Sangalang chipped in nine points and four rebounds.