GILAS Pilipinas coach Tim Cone sees Sean Chambers as an excellent addition to his staff for the team’s upcoming campaign in the Fiba Olympic Qualifying Tournament.
Chambers has been included in the Gilas Pilipinas coaching staff, with fellow assistant coaches LA Tenorio and Josh Reyes unavailable for the OQT.
Tenorio, who is still an active player for Barangay Ginebra in the PBA, has already been assisting with Gilas during the first window of the Fiba Asia Cup 2025 qualifiers, while Reyes is handling the Gilas Youth to the FIBA Under-17 Basketball World Cup.
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“Sean is, at the last minute, we couldn’t get LA to attend with us. He had other duties to do with the company. Josh is so locked in to his World Cup. He's in Turkey right now and he wouldn’t be available for us,” said Cone.
“And we just look around and say, we are short. We were basically Jong (Uichico) and Richard (Del Rosario) and Richard is really the team manager pa. We only have one assistant coach along with Patrick (Partosa) who is really our analytics guy,” said Cone.
Chambers attended Gilas’ training camp at the Inspire Sports Academy last week and was on the bench during the Nationals’ tune-up against Taiwan Mustangs as the Philsports Arena on Monday night.
Chambers’ history with Cone
Chambers, of course, has a long history with Cone, having played under him for more than a decade with Alaska, capturing six PBA crowns including the Milkmen’s first crown in 1991 and the grand slam in 1996.
The 59-year-old Chambers, who is now the head coach of Far Eastern University in the UAAP, is also familiar with the triangle offense that Cone is running with Gilas Pilipinas, which, for Cone, makes him competent to lend a hand in teaching the system to the national squad.
“Sean steps in, he played with me for 13 years. He knows me personally as well as anybody I’ve ever met. He knows our system. He knows the triangle. He is just the perfect guy,” said Cone.
“If you’ve been around him, he is like one of the most wonderful people to have around you. He is a perfect fit,” said Cone.
Cone said the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) had to ask permission from FEU to obtain Chambers’ services for Gilas.
“We begged him and then we begged FEU and thank goodness that he said yes, and, most importantly, FEU said yes. Our thanks goes out to FEU,” Cone added.
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