As he prepares for his first PBA Finals appearance in two years, Jamie Malonzo received a much-needed warm-up.

In order to get ready for the Kings’ upcoming title series against the TNT Tropang Giga, the fit-again power forward was instrumental in Barangay Ginebra’s crushing of first seed Northport in the Commissioner’s Cup quarterfinals.

Malonzo returned to active duty this year after missing nearly nine months due to calf surgery, and he immediately made an impression on the Kings, averaging 11.3 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.2 assists in his 12 games.

However, he truly made an impact in the semifinals, leading the Kings to a team-second-best 17.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 2.2 assists in just five games during the best-of-seven series.

Additionally, the former La Salle mainstay thinks that playing his old squad was the ideal prelude to the championships against TNT.

“I feel good in this (Northport) series. Northport likes to run so I was able to get my breath, lose some pounds, and yeah, it was good to get a wind out there and just prepare for the finals,”  Malonzo said.

He also made good shots, which gave him more self-assurance before a difficult game against TNT.

“I’m shooting the ball really well. It’s got to be over 50-60 (percent) somewhere up there high. That’s always good going to a tough match-up like this. I just hope I could keep it up, to be honest,” Malonzo added.

TNT wins the advantage

Since TNT defeated Justine Brownlee and the Kings in six games during the 2023 Governors’ Cup Finals, the 6-foot-7 Fil-Am has not advanced to the finals.

After another six-game series versus the Kings, the Tropang Giga maintained their title in their rematch with the Kings in the season-opening conference.
By that time, Malonzo was sitting haphazardly on the bench, recuperating from his injury to his calf.

“I want to play really bad. It’s always tough, but just being able to sit on the bench, you can see where you can impact the game,” He described the experience of seeing his team lose to the Tropang Giga from the sidelines.

With recent recruit Troy Rosario providing ceiling and muscle in the frontcourt and fellow Fil-am Jeremiah Gray back in harness, Malonzo believes the Kings have a better chance this time around as they take on the same club that has defeated Ginebra in the finals twice in a row.

“I think once you put these pieces together, I think we got a good shot at competing for a title, hopefully,”  he also said,

The Mall of Asia Arena will host the finals on Friday.