No public practice this time for Gilas before Fiba qualifiers

FILE–Gilas Pilipinas coach Tim Cone. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines—Unlike in previous Gilas Pilipinas’ preparations under coach Tim Cone, the squad won’t be holding open practices to the public this time.

Cone said the national team is pressed for time in its preparations for the second window of 2025 Fiba Asia Cup Qualifiers, so opening the doors to fans is out of the question.

“I don’t know if we’ll have the time to do something like we have in the past in Philsports in front of the fans because we only have five days of preparation this time,” said Cone in a presser on Wednesday.

READ: Kouame back as Gilas releases 15-man pool for Fiba qualifiers

“Those five days are really crucial, each day and each practice is going to be very crucial for us. Maybe next time, with longer preparation, we’ll have an opportunity to do that.”

When Cone took over coaching reins ahead of the 2023 Asian Games and the first window of the Asia Cup Qualifiers earlier this year, fans were welcomed to observe the Gilas training.

This time, will be staying in Inspire camp in Calamba, Laguna to train for a week. The coaching staff is looking into facing other teams for tune-ups.

READ: Tim Cone open to possibility of expanding Gilas pool

“We’ve been looking around, we might invite a PBA team to come on up and play us. We’d prefer to play one game prior to meeting up with New Zealand if we could but we don’t have anything in the docket right now. We’re still considering things,” Cone said.

Cone, however, said that the national team will look into bringing back public practices free to the public once the third window rolls around in February.

“Maybe in the next window when we’re going to Taiwan or New Zealand, we’ll work a bit harder to try and get some opportunities for fans to see us before we leave,” he said.

Gilas Pilipinas plays New Zealand on November 21 then Hong Kong on November 24 at Mall of Asia Arena.