By Dave Coros

THERE will be times when they will encounter mismatches, but overall, Jong Uichico believes they can compete and hopefully defend their title.

Mark Caguioa and Junthy Valenzuela are still recovering from injuries and their return to action remains uncertain.

Of course, it would be best if they could rejoin the team sooner than later. But Uichico is not rushing.

No need to.

Chico Lanete, JC Intal and Doug Kramer—acquired from separate trades during the in-between-conference break, apparently have addressed Ginebra’s rotation woes.

“Obviously, they came at the appropriate time. They not only shore up our bench but also fill the void in our rotation,” Uichico said.

Lanete and Intal had their exposure as Kings on Wednesday and helped defending champion Ginebra beat the Coca-Cola Tigers, 110-103, in the 2009 Motolite Philippine Basketball Association Fiesta Cup.

Lanete, who used to provide spark for the Purefoods Giants, came off the bench and scored four points in 20 minutes, while Intal, who had a lukewarm stint with Air21 (now Burger King), had two points in 17 minutes.

But more than the points, Uichico took notice of their hustle and desire to win, the kind of character that, he stressed, will be key in their title defense.

The possibility of the Kings succeeding in accomplishing their goal, however, depends largely on how their import, Rod Nealy, would perform each game.

If his game on Wednesday is an indication, the future could be as bright as the summer sun for the Kings, who ruled this conference last season with seven-footer Chris Kings.

This marks the second tour of duty with the Kings for the 28-year-old, six-foot-five overseas veteran, who drew ooohs and aaahs from the jam-packed crowd at the Ynares Center on Wednesday with an amazing display of shot making, power moves off the boards and remarkable passing ability.

He eventually finished with 42 points, 23 rebounds and barely missed a triple-double with nine assists.

Nealy’s astounding showmanship did not escape the watchful eyes of Burger Kings coach Yeng Guiao, who conceded that Nealy will be a matchup nightmare for his Titans.

Burger King opened its campaign in the season-ending tournament with a 96-87 rout of the Sta. Lucia Realtors on Saturday in Dumaguete City.

Guiao was pleased with the result but confessed his team still has lots of room for improvement. He also noted that the Titans beat a team that doesn’t have its top two players—Dennis Espino and Kelly Williams—who are recovering from injuries.

Burger King’s scheduled date with Barangay Ginebra on Friday night should determine whether the Titans can compete with the big boys.

As for the Kings, the 7:30 p.m. duel at the Cuneta Astrodome will be a good test for Nealy, who will be up against Shawn Daniels, an import who may not have Nealy’s speed but is certainly effective.

Daniels is gifted with a soft touch from the perimeter, good moves around the basket and seems to have the ability to read his opponent’s mind. Against Sta. Lucia, he turned in 14 points and 13 rebounds.

“Mabigat ang laban. Wala kaming pang tapat kay Nealy. He’s a heavy scorer,” Guiao said.

Guiao claimed the Titans can’t win if they can’t stop Nealy. “We need to get more support from the locals to counter that,” he said.

The Tigers, who gave the Kings a tough challenge before losing steam in the closing minutes, try to bounce back against the Barako Bull in the other game at 4:50 p.m.

The Barakos are also coming off an 83-91 loss against Rain Or Shine on Sunday and coach Leo Isaac hopes his chargers learned something from that defeat.


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