Gavina bagong head coach ng RoS

MANILA, Philippines — Pinangalanan ng pamunuan ng Rain or Shine si Chris Gavina bilang bagong head coach ng Elasto Painters sa pagbubukas ng PBA Season 46 Philippine Cup sa Abril.

Papalitan ni Gavina si dating head coach Caloy Garcia na mananatili pa rin sa Rain or Shine dahil magsisilbi itong head of basketball operations.

“Saan ka nakakita na isang organization na nagpalit ng head coach pero magkakasama pa rin sila? This is to address the new landscape of basketball,” ani Rain or Shine owner Raymond Yu.

Si Gavina ang magmamando sa Elasto Painters sa kampanya nito habang si Garcia naman ang ma­ngangalaga sa kabuuan ng team.

“Coach Caloy will take care of the macro and see and find ways on how to improve the team while coach Chis will take care of the micro, which means he’ll be calling the shots in the game and preparations of the team,” ani Yu.

Ilan sa mga dahilan ng management ang pagpasok ni Garcia sa coaching staff ng Gilas Pilipinas na naghahanda para sa FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers at FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

“We considered his long-term involvement with Gilas and we don’t want it to be a distraction, so we have to make things workable for all of us,” dagdag ni Yu.

Bukas-palad namang tinanggap ni Garcia ang kanyang bagong role sa Elasto Painters.

“We support the manage­ment’s decision. For me, this is something new and a new challenge, but at least I’m still connected with basketball and with a much bigger role overseeing the day-to-day operations of the team,” ani naman ni Garcia.

Hindi naman magi­ging bago ang tungkulin para kay Gavina dahil ilang taon na itong bahagi ng c­oaching staff ng Elasto Painters.

Ipinagmalaki rin nito ang magandang samahan ng Rain or Shine na animo’y isang malaking pamilya na.

“One good thing about this organization is we’re like a family, so when I was appointed head coach of the team where I’m already a part of was easy to accept. We’re a playoff contender, but we look forward to winning cham­pionships in the future,” wika ni Gavina.

Unang tututukan ni Gavina ang paghugot ng mga players sa PBA Annual Rookie Draft upang palakasin ang kanilang kasalukuyang lineup.