INJURED finger and all, TNT guard Rey Nambatac declared readiness to make his PBA finals debut and help the Tropang Giga defend the Governors' Cup crown against Barangay Ginebra.
Nambatac dislocated his right pinky during their Game 5 closeout of semifinal rival Rain or Shine but maintained he's good to go right before TNT and Ginebra fire the opening salvo on Sunday.
"Okay naman, playable naman sa Game 1. I don't think magiging distraction pa 'to sa akin," said the seven-year guard, who joined TNT from Blackwater via a trade in the pre-season.
"Wala naman 'to, maliit na bagay. What's more important is makalaro ng 100 percent sa finals na 'to," he added.
Nambatac waited seven long years to get to this stage. He reached as far as the semifinals thrice before in his first six seasons in the league with ROS and missed the playoffs in his one-conference stint with Blackwater last season.
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At TNT, Nambatac seamlessly blended with his new teammates. The former Letran star was even the third-best local scorer for the squad this conference with 12.67 points behind RR Pogoy (13.71) and Calvin Oftana (12.89) while also accounting for 5.06 rebounds and 2.39 assists.
Being a first-time finalist, Nambatac knows the challenge he faces.
"It's gonna be tough kasi itong Ginebra, halos beterano na 'yan. Majority of their players are already experienced sa finals so they know how to play in the finals," he said.
"So for me, that's my biggest challenge - how to play their pace, ano'ng counters na kailangang gawin and finals na ito, kailangan natin less mistakes dapat. Nasa akin 'yun kung paano ko ma-oovercome 'yun," he added.(OL)
