Joe Devance made his presence felt whenever he saw action for Ginebra in the PBA Season 49 Governors' Cup playoffs.
What was shaping up to be a story book ending for Joe Devance and Ginebra ended in a loss in the PBA Season 49 Governors’ Cup Finals against TNT.
Though it was not the closing salvo he envisioned, Devance could not help but feel fulfilled nonetheless.
“It’s kind of crazy how it started to how it ended. A little anti-climatic for us. The build-up was great,” he said shortly after Ginebra succumbed to TNT, 85-95, in Game 6 to hand the Tropang Giga their 10th PBA championship on Friday, Nov. 8.
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Devance returned to the Philippines only to take care of some business but wound up “unretiring” to bolster an injury-laden Gin Kings in the playoffs.
But perhaps his return was meant to show the young Gin Kings core what it takes to win championships.
“I’m proud to have played with those guys. They’re young, talented. I hope they saw the sacrifice, the pain that I went through to help uplift them,” said Devance.
“I hope this next generation can play for each other, with each other. That’s what I'm hoping. I sent that message to them. We’ll see.”
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Devance has made a great job filling in for injured Isaac Go and playing back up to Japeth Aguilar.
But a knee issue forced him to sit out some games in the semifinals against San Miguel and in the Finals opposite the Tropang Giga.
But when he finally saw action in Game 3, the lefty forward did wonders right away.
Devance finished with two points, a rebound, two assists and a steal in 15 minutes to help the Gin Kings arrest a two-game skid and come away with an 85-73 win.
[RELATED STORY: Joe Devance sees action, gives Japeth Aguilar much-needed rest for Ginebra in Game 3 win]
He played sparingly in Game 4, with just a point, a rebound and an assist to show in less than five minutes on the floor. He was not fielded in in Games 5 and 6.
“Deep down inside, I really feel like if I played, we would have won. I really tried but I couldn’t get past the pain. It took everything I could. It is what it is. We've got to move on,” he said.
Veteran Joe Devance guides his Ginebra teammates from the bench in Game 2 of the PBA Season 49 Governors' Cup Finals last Oct. 31. | Photo (c) RM Chua/One Sports
The million-dollar question now is whether or not Devance, who knows coach Tim Cone’s system like the back of his hand, will return for another tour of duty with the Gin Kings.
He was non-committal.
“I’m not going to say that this is my last. I don’t know yet,” Devance said.
“If I can just get my knees right, I felt really good. It’s just my knees. My mind was there. The game was slow for me. It didn’t seem like it was fast. I just couldn't get my knees going. But what a journey. It was beautiful.”