Pangunahing pagtutuunan ng pansin ni Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone ang depensa sa preparasyon ng national team para sa ika-30 edisyon ng Southeast Asian Games.
Ayon kay Cone, sesentro ang mga ensayo ng Gilas sa pagiging mainam na defensive team makaraang magsimula na ang paghahanda ng 15-man pool para sa regional sports meet.
Wala naman daw nakikitang problema si Cone sa opensa ng Gilas, ngunit kailangan aniyang pandayin pa rin ito upang makasabay sa depensa.
“I think we underestimate the defensive side in putting national teams together. I think if we can become a great defensive team or at least all on the same page, we have schemes, we know what we are going to do defensively, then our offense will take care of itself. So we’re going to work from that angle,” wika ni Cone.
Hindi naman umano gagamitin ni Cone ang triangle offense na sistema kung saan ito nakilala sa kanyang coaching career.
Paliwanag ni Cone, gahol na raw kasi sa oras ang kanilang paghahanda lalo pa’t sa Disyembre na ang SEA Games.
“We are not using the triangle but we are using triangle concepts. When you talk about the triangle, you talk about the Tex Winter triangle and the pure triangle. We are playing more of a motion offense. It’s easier to teach, it’s easier to learn. But we are going to simplify it more and similar to what we run with Ginebra now. We are going to see how far we can build in 10 practices in terms of being an advanced offense, go beyond the basic level. We will see where we can go,” ani Cone.
