Tim Cone cautious on expanding Gilas pool amid Ginebra’s new additions

(c) FIBA.basketball

When Ginebra traded for Isaac Go last Saturday and drafted RJ Abarrientos a day later, there were murmurs online saying that the move not only beefed up the Gin Kings but also Gilas Pilipinas.

After all, the two young stalwarts are eager for a return to the national team.

However, Gilas and Ginebra head coach Tim Cone is not keen on expanding the Gilas pool of 12 regular players and two alternates just yet.

His program is tailored for short practices and multiple repetitions.

“The teaching part of coaching a team is much harder if you have a big pool. If there are 18 players on the team, you must teach all 18 your system,” he explained in a press conference on Monday at the Cignal Customer Experience Center in Sheridan, Mandaluyong.

What makes Cone’s Gilas unique is that it balances both the FIBA windows and the PBA calendar.

The winningest head coach in PBA history believes that by the time the FIBA World Cup 2027 rolls around, his pool’s chemistry will be at its peak.

(C) FIBA.basketball

“It becomes very unwieldy and difficult to do that, especially if you only have seven to 10 days of training. If you have a whole year or a season to teach, you can spread out the instruction over a longer period of time,” he continued.

“With short preparation time, it’s like teaching five people something—they’ll learn it quickly. But if you teach 25 people, it takes much longer.”

By the time the second window of the FIBA Asia Cup 2025 Qualifiers rolls around in November, Cone expects to have AJ Edu, Scottie Thompson, and Jamie Malonzo back as well.

If there is one change that might come for Gilas in the next few years, it’s the naturalized player position.

Though Justin Brownlee continues to be spectacular, he is already 36 years old. He’d be 39 when the next World Cup comes around.

That is where Bennie Boatwright might come in.

“We are excited about him. The whole naturalized situation is happening as we speak, and he is very excited,” Cone said about Boatwright.