Kelly Williams has probably heard all the age talk when he came out of retirement three years ago for TNT. He shares how he brushes them all off as the Tropang Giga clinched the PBA Season 49 Governors' Cup.
"Aging like fine wine" and "turning back the hands of time" when things are working out.
"Too old." "He's already 40." And "can't beat Father Time" when things aren't going so well.
The 42-year-old Kelly Williams has probably heard them all.
Despite missing a few games for the TNT Tropang Giga in the PBA Season 49 Governors' Cup due to injuries, Williams still proved to be pivotal when it mattered most.
He lifted his ninth championship with TNT. Not bad for a guy who came out of retirement in 2021.
"Part of it is not listening to the outside forces and voices that try to tell you [that] you shouldn't do certain things or you can't do certain things because of your age," Williams shared to One PH's Power & Play on Saturday.
He's aware of the comments regarding basketball performances when players reach a certain age.
"They start to say, he's this old. When he plays well, he's turning back the hands of time. When he's not playing well, you chalk it up to, 'well, he's 30+ or 40+ in my case," Williams recounted.
"Letting go of any outside chatter has been big for me, and just not believing I'm supposed to be a certain way."
Machine Gun Kelly certainly did just that with his 11-point performance in Game 5 even with just 15 minutes of action.
He helped TNT clinch the title in Game 6 with four points, four rebounds, and four assists.
"Just believe, seeing myself at a certain way and keeping a certain standard for myself I think has helped me a lot with just being able to do the things that I know that I can do," he shared.
It also helps that he has a supportive cast.
"You have teammates that are 100% supporting you. You have coaches and management big bosses that really believe in you," he said. "You're set up to win and so I've been fortunate to be in that situation for three more years since I've came out of that last retirement."
That formula seems to be working pretty well, given that TNT won three titles in that period.
And now they aim for another one when the Commissioner's Cup starts November 27.
[NEXT: TNT coach Chot Reyes sets sights towards next PBA title: 'Ten is now a step towards 11']