Coach Tim Cone gets his chance to officially lead Gilas Pilipinas Men.
Coach Tim Cone is officially back as head coach for the Philippine men’s basketball team.
The winningest coach in the history of the Philippine Basketball Association will take the reigns for Gilas Pilipinas Men, ready to guide the national team in 2024.
“Coach Tim accomplished what has not been done in decades with only a few weeks to prepare and multiple challenges in terms of personnel so we’re excited to see what he can accomplish with a long-term program in place especially if such program is supported by all basketball stakeholders.” said SBP President Al Panlilio.
Coach Tim is coming off a historic Asian Games gold medal in China last year, guiding the Philippines to its first basketball championship in the quadrennial event in 61 years.
This will be Cone’s first chance at leading Gilas Pilipinas into FIBA competition. He previously handled the bronze-winning Centennial Team in the 1998 Asian Games, the gold-winning team in the 2019 SEA Games, and the aforementioned Asian Games team that won in China last year.
“I’m looking forward to taking on the role of national team head coach again,” said Cone.
“I’ve always firmly believed from back in 1998 when I coached the Centennial Team that you’ve got to go out and get the best players in the country to represent us. We all have different opinions on who the best players are but we’re confident we picked the best players who will form the best team,” he added.
The first order of business for coach Tim will be the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers which open next month.
The Philippine schedule will start February 22 against Hong Kong, followed by a February 25 showdown against Chinese Taipei.
The FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament for the Paris Summer Games also loom, with Gilas set to compete in Latvia in July.