Replacing Tim Cone like replacing Phil Jackson, says new Star coach Jason Webb

With Tim Cone's move to Ginebra already formalized on Thursday, taking over the void he left for the Star Hotshots is a tall order for rookie coach Jason Webb.

 

Webb's credentials as a former player, commentator, and assistant coach pale in comparison to Cone's 18 championships including two Grand Slams, and no one is more aware of the fact than himself.

 

"He's the greatest coach of the PBA," he told reporters in the press conference officially announcing his appointment. "Those shoes are not fillable."

 

With the Hotshots just a year removed from their Grand Slam season in 2014, Webb is already feeling the weight of expectations from being Cone's replacement.

 

"I think this is one way for me to lessen the pressure - that maybe I'm actually getting into a vacancy rather than replacing coach Tim," he said.

 

Acknowledging Cone's legacy, Webb said he just wants to avoid being cast as another Tim Floyd, Rudy Tomjanovich, and Mike Brown, all of whom came after Phil Jackson in the NBA.

 

"These are the guys that came after Phil Jackson and they don't really have a lot of success," he said.

 

"Coming after Phil Jackson being the greatest coach of our generation in the NBA and Coach Tim being the greatest coach of our generation in the PBA, I just want to do better than those three guys."

 

While he is taking over a team that is just one year removed from a Gradn Slam, the former La Salle standout, who is following the footsteps of his father Freddie Webb as a PBA coach, said he won't make any promises for the Star Hotshots.

 

"The only thing I could assure is I would try to be the best possible coach for the current scenario," he said.

 

Cone, meanwhile, is confident that he is leaving the Hotshots in good hands.

 

"I feel the farther away they get away from the Grand Slam, the more motivated they're gonna get, the more the energy's gonna come back," he said. —JST, GMA News