‘Huge honor’ for TNT’s Dickel

MANILA, Philippines — TNT coaching consultant Mark Dickel said yesterday it was a “huge honor” to call the shots for the Philippines at the FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers against Indonesia in Jakarta last February and while there was pressure to win, the job wasn’t as stressful because he was surrounded by an outstanding staff and talented players.

Whether he’ll continue to be involved in the Gilas program is something that’s up to SBP chairman emeritus Manny V. Pangilinan. “No idea who’ll be the next coach,” said Dickel. “That’s above my level of decision-making. It’s not my call. All I know is my focus right now is TNT.”

Dickel, 43, was brought in to join the TNT coaching staff towards the tail-end of the 2017-18 PBA Governors Cup eliminations where the KaTropa eventually finished ninth. Last season, the New Zealand native was with TNT for three conferences as the team wound up sixth in the Philippine Cup, second in the Commissioner’s Cup and third in the Governors Cup. Overall, TNT posted a 35-19 record compared to 18-19 the previous campaign. In the last 13 conferences, TNT has made it to only five semifinals, two with Dickel at the helm.

“We won a lot more games than the year before but we didn’t win the important ones to get us back to the finals,” he said. “There’s definitely pressure to win within the MVP Group and rightfully so. It’s a big responsibility to work for a group that does its best to get you the top players and put you in a position to succeed. As a coach, it’s a blessing. The expectation is to win and no doubt, we’ve got to win. Players understand that if they do well, they’ll be taken care of. But the learning curve is steep, particularly as I’ve been with the team only for three full conferences.”

When the PBA’s 45th season was called off last month, Dickel said TNT was ready to battle. “We were all prepared,” he said. “We were excited to compete and see how far we go with our core and our new players. With this lockdown, it’s a day-to-day situation. At home, I watch a lot of games on video, trying to learn new things. I often speak with (former TNT coach) Bill Bayno who’s in the Indiana Pacers staff. Bill was my coach at UNLV and recommended me for the TNT job. I’m sure coach Tab (Baldwin) had a lot to do with it, too, as he always looks out for his former players. I played for coach Tab with the New Zealand national team. As for TNT, we communicate by Viber, Zoom or text. Every day, the players have things to do to keep in shape but there are limitations because some have work-out equipment and others don’t. We just try to do the best we can.”