MANILA – For Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone, PBA star Scottie Thompson could have made a difference in the team’s campaign at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Riga, Latvia.

The Filipino cagers went on to defeat World No. 6 and host country Latvia in said tourney, to the delight of Filipino basketball fans, but eventually fell to Brazil in the semifinals as they missed entirely on a Paris berth.

“Everyone knows how much I rely personally on Scottie. Everything’s built around and through him. So it was a big loss for us in Gilas. We had to move players around, put them in different positions, especially Dwight [Ramos],” Cone said Thursday during the PBA Season 49 Draft Combine at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.

Gilas was forced to play Dwight Ramos at the point due to Thompson’s absence.

Thompson did not see action in the Olympic qualifiers due to a “bulging disc that has bothered him” during Ginebra’s bid in the 2024 PBA Philippine Cup.

“So that’s kind of what we were forced to do with [Dwight Ramos]. And Scottie would have alleviated that. And just that extra energy guy. You know, the third game, the fourth game, that energy guy continues to push everybody else. So I really miss him,” the decorated tactician said.

Cone also said he is not yet onboard about the former PBA MVP’s condition.

“He had taken a turn for the worse since the semifinals in the last conference. And just having trouble standing up and walking around. So we don’t know where he is at this point,” he said.

“I haven’t had a chance to talk to Scottie yet since I’ve been back. I know he’s been continuing his rehab. I’ve always said back issues are one of the toughest to really latch on to in terms of how you rehab it, how you get it right. The last resort for a back that’s really injured was surgery. You want to do everything you can except to have surgery. So I don’t really know where Scottie is at this point,” Cone added.

The Ginebra mentor added that the star guard might miss action in the upcoming PBA season, but asserted that Thompson will fight his way through the injury to contribute in the Gin Kings’ title bid.

“I’ll talk to him in the next couple days and figure out. He may miss some time. We’ll figure that out later. But Scottie’s Scottie. If he can possibly play, he’s going to figure out a way to play,” Cone said.