The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters held a twice-to-beat advantage in their PBA quarterfinals matchup against the Meralco Bolts.
There were no regrets for freshly retired Gabe Norwood as he ended his storied PBA career with a quarterfinals exit when the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters bowed to the Meralco Bolts even with a twice-to-beat advantage in the PBA Philippine Cup.
Though he would’ve liked a better ending to his 17-year run with Rain or Shine, Norwood made sure to leave it all out on the court.
After all was said and done, the 40-year-old was at peace with how things transpired. But it wasn’t quite the same for his teammates that were hoping to spend more time with the two-time PBA champion by their side before he hung up his jersey for good.
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At the end of it, Norwood thought it best to be Rain or Shine’s leader one last time and reframe his teammates’ mindset with the loss.
“For me, personally, I tried to keep myself together. That’s kind of how I lead, or maybe just as a man, how I was raised. Kind of, hiding, tucking those in for personal moments. But you know, the guys, I’m sure they took it hard on themselves. Some guys more than others. Just visually,” Norwood recalled on a recent episode of One News’ Play by Play.
“But I just tried to assure them that they didn’t disappoint me at all, I think there was a lot of sense of disappointment, but it’s basketball,” he added.
In good hands
At the end of the day, Norwood still would’ve liked to add another ring on his finger before he stepped aside for good.
And with RoS entering the quarterfinals as the 2-seed, more would’ve expected they’ll be contending for the title. But with things not going their way, the 40-year-old chose to focus on the good things and how the team will move forward without him.
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With the likes of Adrian Nocum, Caelan Tiongson, and Stanley Pringle leading the helm once the next conference rolls around, Norwood is confident in what they can do.
“Everybody wants a storybook ending and to ride off into the sunset with a championship,” said Norwood.
“But ultimately, great group of guys in the locker room and I thank them for keeping me young at heart and making my job easy.”
Days after officially retiring, Norwood did admit that it will take some getting used to. But as everything else in life, the 11-time PBA All-Star does look forward to moving on with his life.
“I’m sure it’ll probably kick in a little bit more when I see Rain or Shine out there on the ground on the TV, things like that,” he said.
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Luisa Morales is a sports writer with a special interest in promoting women’s sports.
Her coverage highlights include the UAAP, PVL, Southeast Asian Games, and the FIBA World Cup. She also follows Alex Eala, the Philippine women’s national football team, and mixed martial arts.