Gilas Pilipinas: Cone sees ‘Jayson ability’ in Ravena, speaks highly of maturity

Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone praised Kiefer Ravena’s maturity level in light of Ravena’s addition to the national team pool for the 2019 Southeast Asian Games.

Ravena replaced the injured Jayson Castro in the Gilas pool, and Cone was quick to note that Ravena has some of the same qualities as Asia’s best point guard.

“We’re all going to miss Jayson terribly, but Kiefer has some of that Jayson ability in him. We’re going to lose the experience of Jayson, but Kiefer got that rare maturity that kind of blends himself to be able to play with the bunch of vets and still be a leader and still do the things he needs to do,” said Cone of Ravena per the PBA website.

Ravena has shown immense leadership since the start of his professional career, with colleagues taking note of how his maturity level is relatively on a different level compared to other players of his age.

The NLEX Road Warriors guard is averaging 16.5 PPG, 5 RPG, 9.5 APG, and 1.6 SPG in 8 games in the Governors’ Cup.

Cone did explicitly say Ravena’s inclusion to the final line-up is not guaranteed and that as it stands, he is just another “extra body” for Gilas’ practice sessions.

(Photo from FIBA.com)