RESR, recover, and then on to the next PBA campaign.
Its season over, Magnolia now looks forward to the coming Philippine Cup that ushers the league's 47th season starting in June.
Coach Chito Victolero said the goal now is to prepare for the all-Filipino conference following the Hotshots' exit in the Governors' Cup after losing to the Meralco Bolts in their do-or-die Game 5.
"We will just try to rest muna siguro, pagod din talaga yung mga players, ang daming injuries. So rest muna, and then we'll prepare for the Philippine Cup," he said
Victolero lamented the fate suffered by the Hotshots in their final game of the season in a 94-81 heartbreaker against the Bolts that denied them of a second straight trip to the finals.
Sponsored content: It didn't help any that import Mike Harris failed to finish the match after another hard fall - his second in the game - in which he was inadvertently elbowed on the kisser by Meralco counterpart Tony Bishop.
Despite falling short of its goal, Victolero said the top seeded Hotshots had their heads held high.
"I'm very proud kasi lumaban kami, hindi nga lang sapat, kapos nga lang. its' a 50-50 chance," he said. "And hindi naman natin inaasahan na may mga mangyayaring injuries," he said about Harris and even top gunner Paul Lee, who is also nursing a sprained ankle for the entire semis series.
For now, basketball takes a back seat, according to Victolero, but expects the Hotshots to comeback a better team once it starts preparing for the new season.
"Pababayaan ko muna na makalimutan yung basketball for the next three or four weeks," said the Magnolia coach. "And then we'll start the individual skills, everything, para unti-unting bumalik. And then we'll try kung sino yung mga nasa draft, and dun na magsisimula." (RG)
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