Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone opened up about needing to work within the parameters that he was given following the Nationals’ quarterfinals exit in the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup.
The Philippines fell short in the continental meet as Gilas only won two out of its five games in Saudi Arabia, and Cone lamented not reaching the goal that he set due to how they played.
“We had a vision of how we were supposed to play, but we didn’t quite develop the discipline that we needed to play in that state. That to me was the disappointment,” said the Barangay Ginebra head coach during an appearance on “Power & Play” on Saturday morning, August 16.
“These are really great guys, there are no dramas, but the bottom line is, as much as we want to talk about the good feelings about the team, it still comes down to performance,” he added.
Cone himself wanted to have more time in terms of their preparations for the Asia Cup.
The PBA only saw its Philippine Cup finals concluded in late July, barely half a month before the Jeddah tournament started.
“Three of those days we only had a full team practice. We only had seven or eight guys, and two of whom didn’t make the Final 12,” he added, talking about RJ Abarrientos and Troy Rosario.
Cone and his program had been criticized for not getting enough time for their preparations since he officially assumed Gilas’ top post. However, the PBA’s winningest coach said that if he had the authority, he would have given the national team more time to prepare.
“These are things that are personally out of my control. We have certain parameters from which we can work, and we’re trying to do the best within those parameters,” he said.
“If you want to change the whole culture, I would be great with that. But again, these are the parameters which we have,” continued Cone, before talking about other factors.
“It’s not only time constraints. It’s also budgetary. We don’t have a massive budget. There are certain constraints that we don’t have any control over. I am not the program director, I’m just a coach, and I’m not given that power. By being the coach, you work within the parameters that we are given. “
“I can’t change that. I can’t worry about what I can’t control,” he added.
These are the same reasons that Cone — albeit now with more leeway as his program progressed — has been sticking with his vision of continuity with Gilas.
“The next widows, we have six days, and the most we have is nine days,” he said about the Philippines’ upcoming assignments in the 2027 World Cup qualifiers in November.
“If we make wholesale changes, and we have only three games to prepare, how good are we gonna be?” Cone added.
Since assuming Gilas’ top spot, only Abarrientos, Rosario, Rhenz Abando, Zav Lucero, Japeth Aguilar, Mason Amos, and now Quentin Millora-Brown have been added to Cone’s national team pool. (ABS-CBN News)