At A Glance
- LAPU-LAPU CITY -- Australia Boomers head coach Brian Goorjian believes Gilas Pilipinas is primed for success under the tutelage of multi-titled mentor Tim Cone.
LAPU-LAPU CITY -- Australian Boomers head coach Brian Goorjian believes Gilas Pilipinas is primed for success under the tutelage of multi-titled mentor Tim Cone.

Goorjian, who once engaged Cone in a thrilling chess match in the PBA Finals, was convinced that the Ginebra coach is a tailored fit for Gilas and that he expects the Nationals to go on a surge in the coming years under his care.
“I only had one year there but there’s no one I had more respect for in the game of basketball in the Philippines than Tim Cone,” Goorjian said of Cone.
“Tim Cone was somebody that I learned from in his success in the Asian Cup and what he’s done already in the window. I just think the Philippines is gonna go on a surge,” he added.
Cone’s era with the Nationals started out well with the Filipinos finally ending a 61-year gold medal drought in the Asian Games before steering Gilas to a dominant sweep of the first window of the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers despite a relatively short preparation time
“I think Tim Cone is the perfect coach for the future of Philippine basketball,” he added.
For Goorjian, Cone’s resume already speaks for himself as to why he was the right coach to take the helm in the Gilas program. The veteran mentor, for one, remains the winningest coach in the PBA and had been invited to be part of the NBA Summer League as an assistant coach numerous times
“He’s been there, he knows his system, he knows the players. He’s respected and smart and knowledgeable,” said Goorjian who's Bay Area Dragons fell to the hands of Cones Barangay Ginebra in the thrilling seven-game Finals series in the 2023 PBA Commissioner’s Cup.
“I’m in Australia. I wanna win a medal in those olympics but I also love seeing this region get better. I'm excited with what’s going on and I think Tim Cone’s hiring is really big for the Philippines,” he added.
Goorjian was back in the country, this time in Cebu as he led the EASL's basketball camp at the Hoops Dome on Satuday, March 9.