Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone is unfazed by the short preparation time heading into the second window of the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers next week.
The national squad is set to open its three-day training camp at the Inspire Sports Academy in Laguna today, hoping to get into fighting form as it battles New Zealand on 21 November and Hong Kong three days later at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Save for Carl Tamayo, who will be arriving from Japan on Saturday, all of the members of the 15-man pool will be in attendance together with Cone’s coaching staff composed of Jong Uichico, Patrick Partosa, Sean Chambers, LA Tenorio and Josh Reyes.
Gilas team manager Richard del Rosario will also be around to make sure that the national dribblers will have everything they need in the closed-door camp that will run until 18 November.
Cone said he is confident that his Gilas pool knows the system and each other very well and has already built a solid chemistry.
The seasoned American mentor has maintained the same names that saw action in the first window last February and the same faces that suited up in the FIBA Olympic Qualifier in Riga, Latvia last July.
“It’s always challenging but we keep talking about the continuity of the program and the preparation that we have is cumulative,” Cone said.
“In other words, we’ve prepared with the first window we had by the beginning of the year. We’ve also prepared with the OQT. That’s been part of our preparation, understanding the system of both offense and defense.”
Gilas will try to finetune its game in a bid to extend a two-game winning streak. The Filipinos are on top of Group B tied with also undefeated world No. 22-ranked New Zealand.
Hong Kong is winless in two outings including a 64-94 drubbing at the hands of Gilas last 22 February at its home court.
“Now we come in, the key that we want is to try and elevate our game every time we come into a new window. We wanna be better from the first one to the second, then the second to the third and then the third going into next year,” Cone said.
“We want to continue to elevate as we become more familiar with each other. We have more practice time with each other. We have more video work with each other and we have more game experience with each other.”
Naturalized players Justin Brownlee and Ange Kouame banner the 15-man Gilas pool, which also has Japeth Aguilar, Mason Amos, AJ Edu, June Mar Fajardo, Jamie Malonzo, Chris Newsome, Calvin Oftana, CJ Perez, Kevin Quiambao, Dwight Ramos, Kai Sotto, Scottie Thompson and Tamayo.
“That’s why the 15, 14-man pool has stayed constant as much as possible because it’s a short preparation time. So, it’s a cumulative one and that’s why it’s important that we keep the group together,” Cone explained.
“That’s always gonna be a challenge the short prep times but that’s not something we (worry about). We don’t have to condition the players because they’re already in good condition. It’s really about teaching and learning, and gaining experience playing with each other under the system the coaching staff is giving them.”
Injuries, however, has also plagued the Gilas pool with Barangay Ginebra winger Malonzo already scratched as he is still recovering from a left calf injury he sustained last April.
On the other hand, Edu hurt his knee just last week, while fellow Japan B.League import Sotto is still undergoing concussion protocols.
Both players’ availability for the games remains up in the air.