MANILA – Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings head coach Earl Timothy “Tim” Cone has been tasked with handling the Gilas Pilipinas team in the 19th Asian Games slated later this month in Hangzhou, China.
Cone, the winningest head coach in the PBA, was tasked with filling the head coaching spot following the decision of Vincent “Chot” Reyes to “step aside” from the Philippine men’s basketball team.
The 65-year-old Cone will be coaching Team Philippines for the second time in the Asiad since leading the Centennial Team to a bronze in 1998, the last time the country landed a podium finish in the tournament.
The appointment of Cone came days after he declared that he was not interested in the Gilas Pilipinas head coaching job to focus on the Gin Kings’ title defense in the 2023 PBA Commissioner’s Cup.
This was the second time that Cone was named interim coach of the Philippine team after also being called in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games to replace resigned Joseller “Yeng” Guiao.
Richard del Rosario will serve as one of Cone’s assistant coaches along with Gin Kings guard LA Tenorio, Joseph Uichico, and Reyes’ son Josh Reyes.
San Miguel Corporation sports director Alfrancis Chua will serve as Gilas’ team manager for the Asiad, while PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial is the deputy team manager.
The national men’s basketball team came off a disappointing campaign in the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup, where they only won one of their five matches.
Gilas Pilipinas is hoping to do better than the fifth-place finish of the Jordan Clarkson-reinforced Rain or Shine Elasto Painters-Philippines in the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia.
Team Philippines is bracketed with Rondae Hollis-Jefferson-led Jordan, SEA Games rival Thailand, and Bahrain in the initial stage of the tournament./PN
