MANILA, Philippines – Following a string of tragic circumstances, Ginebra coach Tim Cone has made it apparent that the Gin Kings require assistance.

After Ginebra’s 87-83 escape of TNT in the PBA Philippine Cup at Philsports Arena on Friday, Cone said that his squad is looking for a boost in different ways–whether it be from signing free agents, calling up someone from the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) or simply proposing trades around the league.

“We’ll search the league for assistance and see if anyone can be of use to us. Whether it be from picking up players from, who knows, maybe MPBL or trades,” said the veteran tactician.

“To cover that gap, we’re searching outside the lineup for assistance. We currently have Sidney (Onwubere) as our four-man, and we go to the guards after Sidney. With the possible exception of Ralph (Cu), who is more of a stretch-four than a defensive three, we don’t really have anyone in between.

A few days ago, the Gin Kings’ lineup became even more reduced.

Following Ginebra’s 95-88 victory over Northport on Sunday, Jamie Malonzo sustained a calf injury, making Ginebra even more depleted at forward.

The three players on the wing for the Gin Kings—Jeremiah Gray, Aljon Mariano, and Jared Dillinger—are also coping with personal injuries.

“If you go back a year or so, the wing was our deepest and strongest position. We intended to rely a lot on Miah, who performed so well throughout the On Tour. Aljon was absent for some time. Jamie was with us. Additionally, there is Dillinger.

“We thought that was an especially strong position. We essentially lost them all now, and that position became the weakest on the squad.

Regarding Gray, who ruptured his ACL in the previous season’s preseason, and Mariano, there are still no concrete details. However, both swingmen are a constant presence at PBA All-Filipino Conference games for Ginebra.

Cone stated that he hasn’t been actively speaking with clubs across the league yet, despite the fact that the prospect of adding a new player was raised.

But one name did come up throughout the conversation: Magnolia forward David Murrell.

“Is a trade currently pending? Not at all. Have other teams been consulted? Not quite yet. But that’s all we’ll be talking about this week. I believe we’ve already claimed Dave Murrell, so we’ll see if anyone else does, but we’re also keeping an eye on some people from the MPBL.”

Backtrack to some injury news: Ginebra is beginning to gel, but injuries are a problem.

Even if the Gin Kings are beginning to click after defeating NorthPort, Ginebra coach Tim Cone didn’t sound overly optimistic.

After a rocky start to the PBA Philippine Cup, Ginebra finished with a 5-3 card to climb up to third place in the rankings.

However, with only a few seconds remaining in the game, Jamie Malonzo—one of Cone’s essential players—went down with an injury, so Cone can’t afford to be relieved. The Gin Kings’ campaign has already suffered a great deal from the injury and the loss of Jeremiah Gray’s services.

Ginebra is beginning to gel, but injuries are a problem.

Even if the Gin Kings are beginning to click after defeating NorthPort, Ginebra coach Tim Cone didn’t sound overly optimistic.

After a rocky start to the PBA Philippine Cup, Ginebra finished with a 5-3 card to climb up to third place in the rankings.

However, with only a few seconds remaining in the game, Jamie Malonzo—one of Cone’s essential players—went down with an injury, so Cone can’t afford to be relieved. The Gin Kings’ campaign has already suffered a great deal from the injury and the loss of Jeremiah Gray’s services.

In the closing seconds of Sunday’s close game, Malonzo was injured while sprinting to the hoop, which came after he had scored 14 points, pulled down six rebounds, and had four assists in 37 minutes.

In contrast, Gray is still healing from an ACL rupture he suffered in July of last year during the preseason.

Luckily for Ginebra, Ralph Cu is shown great promise and the young guns are emerging at the right moment.