Tim Cone admitted that handling the Gilas Pilipinas Men’s 5-on-5 team for the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, is a daunting task, but it is one that he has fully accepted.
The 25-time PBA champion has taken on the mandate of leading the country to continental glory despite the tournament commencing in just a few weeks.
“At this point, I’m just the interim coach through the Asian Games, and then I’ll give the SBP (Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas) time to explore and figure out which direction they want to go,” said Cone, who also did the same during the 30th Southeast Asian Games.
“I’m very, very good with that, and I think that’s the proper way to approach this whole thing — to go through it.”
Cone is coming off a stint as an assistant to Chot Reyes during the country’s ill-fated campaign in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023. The International School of Manila alumnus was part of the coaching staff that led the nation to just one win — a 96-75 victory.
The erstwhile Alaska mentor spoke during the tournament about his refusal to replace Reyes down the line.
However, he has taken on this job with the blessing of TNT officials, as well as some of the most powerful basketball stakeholders in the country, despite the challenge of forming a team this late, with players from the B.League, Korean Basketball League, collegiate leagues UAAP and NCAA, and the NBA unavailable for selection.
“Chot told me that he felt I was the best guy for the job, so that’s giving me confidence to step up,” said Cone. “These guys have been behind me all the way. Of course, Boss RSA (Ramon S. Ang) and MVP (Manuel V. Pangilinan), they’ve also said really nice things.
“I just feel like everybody has my back on this. If everybody has my back, I feel there’s a chance we could succeed despite the fact that we’re only two weeks away, despite the fact we’re not going to have the intact team from the World Cup, which I felt had great chemistry towards the end.
“I thought Chot created great chemistry with that team, and I felt that if we could keep that team together, we’d really make some big noise in the Asian Games. I don’t know if people could match up. We would lose Jordan (Clarkson), of course, but we would get Justin (Brownlee)… However, that’s not the way it’s going to be,” he continued.
“We’re going to have to form a new team and get two weeks to go out and do it.”
Cone is the last head coach who won a medal for the Philippines in the Asian Games back in 1998. He was put in charge of the ‘Centennial Team,” which had the likes of Kenneth Duremdes, Alvin Patrimonio, and Allan Caidic.
That team had the luxury of being formed and preparing together months before the competition. The squad won the 21st William Jones Cup and embarked on friendly matches against American teams in the United States.
This time around, though, the 65-year-old mentor will only have over two weeks of preparation as the tournament starts on September 26. It will be tough, but he is ready to put up a fight.
“There’s only one thing we’re thinking about, and that’s the gold medal,” said Cone. “There’s nothing else.
“But it’s about the day-to-day process to get us there that’s important for us right now. The gold medal is important now, but the process is as well.”
