MANILA, Philippines—Kai Sotto may be nearing a full recovery from an ACL injury but Gilas Pilipinas coach Tim Cone stressed there’s no need to rush the rising big man’s return.

Sotto was playing his best basketball when he suffered a torn ACL in his left knee in the Koshigaya Alphas’ loss in the B.League last January.

READ: Gilas ‘can beat anybody’ when Kai Sotto returns, says Tim Cone

“We’re not going to rush Kai back to the national team… I expect Kai to be playing for the national team when he’s 35 so that’s really the goal,” said Cone after Ginebra’s win over Blackwater in the PBA Philippine Cup Friday night.

“He’s going to be playing all these years, so we’re not going to rush him back this year.”

Cone sees Sotto coming back in the middle of October which is a month before the Fiba World Cup Qualifiers.

Still, that doesn’t mean that the coaching staff and Cone would insert him back to the lineup immediately as the he wants him to be fully recovered before plunging back into action.

READ: Gilas’ Tim Cone eyeing tune-up at home before Gilas’ Fiba Asia Cup bid

Sotto, though, will be traveling with Gilas to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, for the 2025 Asia Cup.

“Kai is going to travel with us and he’ll go, at least that’s what we’ve worked out so far.”

“He’s going to go to the tournament with us, but obviously he won’t play or practice or anything at that point but at least he’ll be part of the team and that’s really, really crucial.”

Gilas is slated to face Chinese Taipei, New Zealand and Iraq in Group D of the Asia Cup without Sotto.