Kevin Quiambao’s Gilas breakthrough not unexpected, says Cone

Gilas Pilipinas forward Kevin Quiambao during a game against Australia in the 2025 Fiba Asia Cup.–FIBA PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Gilas Pilipinas coach Tim Cone wasn’t at all surprised with how Kevin Quiambao fared in the 2025 Fiba Asia Cup.

It’s been well-documented how much belief Cone has in the promising forward.

READ: Kevin Quiambao highlights charge of Gilas youth brigade

So when he became one of the shining stars of the Philippines in the continental competition, Cone saw it as something they’ve been plotting all along.

“KQ has evolved and gotten better as we expected and hoped,” said Cone in an interview with Power and Play.

“He’s not afraid of the moment. He’s ready to play at any time and at a high level, he’s not going to be fearful nor will he be afraid to take some shots.”

Quiambao’s potential was on full display when Gilas showed a last-gasp effort against Australia in the quarterfinals.

While the Philippines bowed out of the competition with an 84-60 loss at the hands of the Boomers, the Korean Basketball League import went down swinging with 17 points and four rebounds.

READ: Kevin Quiambao goes down swinging in Gilas Pilipinas’ final game

The game against Australia was no isolated case, by any means.

The two-time UAAP MVP averaged 12 points, 2.2 rebounds, 1.6 assists and close to three triples per outing.

It hasn’t always been like that for him, though, as Cone said. However, with the help of his teammates and the coaching staff, Quiambao’s confidence kicked into high gear, which allowed him to flourish in the big moments.

“I must admit, in the first couple of tournaments we played he was a little bit afraid of taking those shots. As a young gun, he didn’t want to step in because he had these veterans and he was a bit hesitant.”

“Over time, he got comfortable with his teammates and started showing things in practice. His teammates started to believe him and that’s been the evolution of KQ. It’s not unexpected.”