Cone targets FIBA Asia Cup gold for Gilas, but keeps sights set on Chinese Taipei clash

While a championship remains the ultimate goal, Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone insisted the path to the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup glory starts with full focus on the first game.

The seasoned tactician emphasized the importance of passing an early test against an ever-improving Chinese Taipei on August 6—a matchup that could set the tone for the rest of Gilas Pilipinas’ Asia Cup campaign.

"I’ll say it again, our goal is to win the gold medal. That’s our goal. We’re gonna go out there and try to win the gold medal. Will we? I’m not sure," Cone said on the heels of Gilas' 103-98 win over the Macau Black Bears in a friendly game last Monday.

"That's certainly our goal, but that’s not what we’re focused on though. We’re focused on everyday, on what we do everyday."

Gilas fell to Chinese Taipei the last time they faced each other during the third and final window of the Asia Cup qualifiers last February, where the Filipinos absorbed a 91-84 beating. That win served as Chinese Taipei's first over the Philippines since 2013.

Chinese Taipei is also being bolstered by American-Taiwanese brothers Adam and Robert Hinton, who both play in the US NCAA Division 1. 

With this, head coach Tim Cone believes clearing this early hurdle would be a significant statement for Gilas, especially with tougher matchups against New Zealand and Iraq looming.

"Taiwan beat us the last time we played them and they have two young Division 1 players in the Hinton brothers and those guys are making an impact on that team," Cone added.

"They definitely have the personnel, it wasn’t a fluke that they beat us. So we have to be prepared for them."

When it comes to personnel, however, veteran Justin Brownlee is confident that Gilas has the tools to dominate Asia—backed by a new generation of talent led by AJ Edu, Kevin Quiambao, Carl Tamayo, and Dwight Ramos.

"Man, it’s an incredible challenge you know. You got some really good teams out there," the resident import said. 

"I think that’s very possible to do. It’s just going to take us an extreme amount of hardwork and dedication from everybody to buy into that. With everybody doing that, I think it’s a bright future to be honest for Gilas program."

—JKC, GMA Integrated News