What if Ginebra was Talk ‘N Text?

What if, in some mind-bending alternate universe, Ginebra was Talk ‘N Text? To be clear: I’m not trying to imagine a Talk ‘N Text team with three wins, five losses, two previous reinforcements, one new import and a tenuous state heading into the playoffs. My “what if” pertains to the opposite.

What if Ginebra leads the pack at 9-0? Undefeated. Undeterred. Unquestioned. What if Ginebra had the Texters’ recent winning pedigree? What if Ginebra won the Philippine Cup, the most prestigious of the three conferences, three straight times from 2010 to 2013? What if Ginebra had the Texters’ prolific reputation?

If in this imagined reality, Ginebra became Talk ‘N Text, if Ginebra assumed every habit and trait that made Talk ‘N Text such a PBA juggernaut, would it hurt to ask these questions:

How different would life be for the franchise, for the team’s fans, for the league, for television ratings, for gate attendance, for everyone who loves basketball, for me, for you?
 

What if Ginebra was Talk 'N Text? What if the Barangay's lead guard was Jayson Castro, and not LA Tenorio? KC Cruz

“I’m sure laging 20,000-plus ang crowd,” Jumar Mendoza, a Ginebra fan who devotedly attends games, as well as practices, says. “Sigurado po ako lalo dadami manonood ng PBA.”

Pure bliss. It could lead to pure bliss for fans like Jumar. All those victories. All those winning moments.  All those trophies. Instead of suggesting that the PBA version of the San Antonio Spurs, that paragon of selfless play, is Talk ‘N Text, we would all believe that the Spurs are actually the NBA’s version of Ginebra. In this upside-down world, Never Say Die would actually mean Never Say Lose.

“How different would life be for Ginebra fans if the team enjoyed the amount of success that TNT has enjoyed?” I ask Stephanie Magno, a Ginebra fan who shares quirky yet eloquent post-game dissertations on her blog “TEPMAGS: a basketblog of Ginebrants and the others.”

“Hello! Happier Ginebra fans for sure,” Stephanie declares. “But sometimes I think Ginebra fans are more attached to a ‘defeated’ Ginebra. Or maybe that’s just me.”

Sadistic as it may sound, I know there is happiness in cheering for a team that can spectacularly win and disappoint at the same time. Like they’re always on the brink of either conquest or collapse. Like they’re always close to reaching either dreams or disasters. These fans, perhaps, have a deeper emotional investment. All in. No matter what. I cheered for every undermanned Ateneo team in the nineties. So trust me. I know the feeling.
 

Can Ginebra fans fathom a team sans Mark Caguioa? KC Cruz

Trading fortunes also means trading players. It’s a package deal. So instead of cheering for Mark Caguioa, Jayjay Helterbrand, Greg Slaughter and Japeth Aguilar, Ginebra fans would cheer for Jimmy Alapag, Jayson Castro, Larry Fonacier and Ranidel de Ocampo. Jimmy Alapag, in a Ginebra uniform? My brain is about to explode. But that’s how the alternate universe works.

“Can you imagine enjoying all that success without Caguioa and Helterbrand?”

“Personally no,” Stephanie replies. “For a more recent Ginebra fan like me, Jayjay and Mark has been the core of Ginebra. Eliminated man or champion. And through it all, wins or losses, good health or injured, player changes, good and bad fans, they weathered through it.”

Some Ginebra fans would trade all their recent frustrations for TNT’s current win-loss record. These fans might do so in a heartbeat. Other Ginebra fans cherish the status quo, like dutifully marching through the last five years, tears and all, is a badge of honor. They’ll never trade it for anything.

But I hope it wouldn’t be treason for a fan to daydream even just this once. What if Ginebra’s winning run from 2004 to 2008 never stopped? What if Ginebra assumed TNT’s ways? What if instead of TNT, Ginebra was currently 9-0 in the Commissioner’s Cup, undefeated, undeterred and unquestioned?

““Pwedeng-pwede na po ako kunin ni Lord sa sobrang kaligayahan,” Jumar, whose name on Facebook is “Jumar Ginebra Mendoza”, says. “Handang-handa na po ako kunin niya. Wala na po ako mahihiling pa sa buhay ko!” - AMD, GMA News