The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) kicks off its golden 50th season this weekend, headlined by a marquee matchup between Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and the Magnolia Hotshots on Sunday at the Araneta Coliseum. The clash follows Saturday’s fellowship night at the Meralco Theater.
Ginebra, with two-time Grand Slam coach Tim Cone calling the shots, will face off against his former player LA Tenorio, who is now Magnolia head coach.
Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m., following the opening ceremonies and the annual Leo Awards at Novotel Manila, where Season 49’s Most Valuable Players will be honored.
Cone made minimal adjustments to his roster, adding 6-foot-7 Norbert Torres via free agency from Meralco and signing 6-foot-3 rookie Sonny Estil, the 11th overall pick.
The Gin Kings core of Scottie Thompson, RJ Abarrientos, Japeth Aguilar, Stephen Holt, Troy Rosario, Jeremiah Gray and Maverick Ahanmisi aim to end a two-year championship drought.
Tenorio, who played under Cone at Alaska and Ginebra, shared his excitement about the matchup, saying it’s a privilege to coach against one of the country’s finest basketball minds-even as his team focuses on execution.
‘We will rely more on our defense. I believe our players have what it takes to win the game,’ Tenorio told BusinessMirror on Friday.
‘It is really an honor to play or coach against Tim Cone, but I do not worry about it. We just must treat this as a normal game for us. We must get better each game.’
Magnolia’s new additions include Javi Gomez de Liaño, Rafi Verano, Paolo Taha, and Gab Gomez.
Rookie 6-foot-5 center Yutien Andrada will join the team after fulfilling his commitments with the San Beda Red Lions in the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
This season also marks the debut of Jason Webb as Magnolia’s new team governor.
The festivities begin at 2 p.m. on Sunday at the green gate of Araneta Coliseum, where players will engage with fans for four hours.
The celebration then moves to the Meralco Theater in the evening, honoring the league’s past and present members from the press, teams and staff.