CONE HEAD COACH NG GILAS PILIPINAS

MULING gagabayan ni Tim Cone ang Gilas Pilipinas national team.

Ito ang kinumpirma ng Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (BSP) nitong Lunes.

Hahawakan ni Cone ang men’s basketball team simula sa FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers sa February at sa FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

“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.” wika ni SBP President Al Panlilio sa isang statement.

Sinabi naman ni Cone na, “I’m looking forward to taking on the role of national team head coach again. 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.”

Bahagi ng core team ni Cone sina Scottie Thompson, Chris Newsome, Calvin Oftana, CJ Perez, Jamie Malonzo, June Mar Fajardo, Dwight Ramos, AJ Edu, Carl Tamayo, Kai Sotto, at Kevin Quiambao. Si Justin Brownlee ang magsisilbing naturalized player ng koponan, habang hinihintay ang desisyon ng FIBA hinggil sa kanyang eligibility.

Ginabayan ni Cone ang Gilas sa Asian Games gold medal noong nakaraang October.

Ito na ang ika-4 na stint ni Cone bilang national head coach, matapos na hawakan ang Centennial Team sa 1998 Bangkok Asian Games at ang Gilas squad sa 2019 Southeast Asian Games.

Makakasama ni Cone si Richard del Rosario bilang team manager ng Gilas Pilipinas.