Hearing it from coach Jong Ucihico, his Ginebra team is still a long way off from the one he envisions it to be.
"Hopefully, we can keep on improving, dahil talagang medyo kapaan pa kami sa isa't-isa," said Uichico.
Yet the Kings are proving Uichico wrong early in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup, playing like a well-oiled machine for the most part against quality opposition in their first two games for a share of the early lead at the Araneta Coliseum.
Ginebra downed opening-day winner Purefoods 95-87 last Sunday after debuting with a 98-86 conquest of Fiesta Cup finals tormentor San Miguel Beer and this pleased Uichico the most since he didn't really know what to expect in those two games.
"We got new players and we wanted some more adjustment period," he explained. "But it's good we have our veterans na medyo adjusted na sa system."
Continuing to build team chemistry remains a priority, however, since the Kings are merely halfway through their tough opening assignments.
The winner of the tournament's 2004-05 and 06-07 editions faces dangerous guest team Smart Gilas on Friday before battling last year's runner-up Alaska on Sunday. After a nearly two-break, they battle Barako Bull on Nov. 6.
"Nakalusot kami sa dalawa pero we have two strong games again ahead," noted Uichico. "Medyo mabigat-bigat 'yung Smart Gilas and Alaska, so hopefully we can get past those two games also."
The period before those matches should be put to good use, based on the Purefoods game.
Last year's MVP Jayjay Helterbrand scored 19 points and issued nine assists to lead three other Ginebra players who notched at least 10 points, including Willy Wilson's career-high 16 points.
James Yap finished with a game-high 21 points while Peter June Simon added 16 and Roger Yap 13 for the Giants in a tight game that featured 13 lead changes and 10 deadlocks. But when it came to the crunch, the Kings simply had more in their arsenal.
Ronald Tubid capped a 14-point, six-rebound, two-steal performance with five points in a decisive 11-3 run that gave the Kings a safe nine-point lead from a 79-78 count.
It was a big morale-booster for Ginebra, which refused to buckle under pressure after squandering a 13-point third quarter lead.
The count was tied at 78-all before Billy Mamaril canned in a charity then Tubid struck with his five-point binge pushing the Kings ahead at 84-78 with 2:16 left to play.
"That shouldn't have happened, pero nand'yan na 'yan at mabuti na lang naka-recover kami," said Uichico.
"It's good we ran a streak, offensively, at the right time to get the spread," he added. "When we got that spread in the fourth quarter medyo nakahinga na, so we were able to maintain it." Noli Cortez - Malaya Online Edition
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