This appears in the Thursday May 13, 2010 edition of Business Mirror.
Looking ahead with Rajko Toroman
words & pic by rick olivares
The longest he’s lived abroad is three years in Belgium. As for the Philippines, he’s been year for almost a year and a half. He’s a little more at peace now that his wife has joined him here and he no longer has to chat, Skype, or call long distance. “This is the path I chose and I am comfortable with it. And living in Manila is very good for a basketball fan like me. There’s the PBA, you have the Fil Oil tournament now, and there’s even Basketball TV. So it’s good to be a basketball fan here.” said Toroman.
But all is not well is his mind.
On a sunny Wednesday morning, the head coach of Smart Gilas Pilipinas is looking concerned. He should be. Heading into the 21st staging of the FIBA Asia Champions Challenge Cup in Doha, Qatar from May 22-30, his team is banged up with point guard Jayvee Casio sure to miss out on the tournament.
Casio is one of his two prized court generals. Mark Barroca is on the floor when they need to step on the pedal. Aggressive, he is perfect for the running game but recently he’s been hampered with a bad back.
Casio is fleet of foot as well, but he is better served when the team needs to walk it off and set up their halfcourt offense. Without Casio who is recuperating from an MCL injury, Chris Tiu and JR Cawaling will have to see point guard duties.
Chris Banchero, the Fil-Italian who tried out with the team in their recent training camp in Las Vegas and was impressive against pre-NBA Draft players, is unavailable.
The team’s dynamic swingman Marcio Lassiter is also nursing some nagging injuries. Center Rabeh Al-Hussaini has returned with a more patient nature but still lacks the international experience that Greg Slaughter and Jason Ballesteros have soaked up. Aldrech Ramos, also recently returned to the line-up is slowly regaining his form.
Forward Rey Guevarra is ready to go but like Al-Hussaini, he’s missed out a chunk of international experience because of an ACL injury that he suffered in Letran’s penultimate game during the NCAA’s Season 85.
For Japeth Aguilar, the coach and his staff demand more consistency. “There are days when he is very good and days when he is invisible. Like last night (in a scrimmage versus Talk ‘N Text in the Moro Lorenzo Sports Center won by the Tropang Texters 88-70), he only got one rebound. We need him to not only score but to get more rebounds because we can only run the fastbreak if we have those rebounds. But he is improving.”
Even with a line-up laced with Fil-Ams, Toroman thinks that last year’s team that played in the Jakarta edition of the Champions Cup was better. “We were complete.” The coach said rather succinctly.
But the main cause for concern is the team’s import. Fellow Serb Milan Vucicevic saw action in Qatar a few months ago but has been inactive for over a month. Not only does the team’s new candidate for naturalization need to get in game shape but also he needs to acclimatize himself to hot and humid Manila but also to hydrate better. “He is bothered by the heat but he needs to get used to it if he wants to continue with this team,” noted Toroman.
Focus and dedication is what the former Yugoslav national coach expects from his wards. Some like Barroca have noted that the team plays better when they are abroad. “Wala masyadong distractions,” said the former FEU Tamaraw. Toroman agrees but he wishes that his team would learn not to make distinctions on where they play hard.
“They want to be professional basketball players. They must learn how to dedicate themselves. Doha will be the test for many things that we have been trying to do. We are always evaluating things and see if it works. If we are not able to get a suitable import, then we have to work with what we have. Greg is improving well. But he cannot do it alone.”
But his concerns aside, Toroman is happy after all, things are slowly falling into place. “In Iran, I had no idea where we were going. In the Philippines, I know where to go. And we are. Slowly but surely.”
And to underscore that, Toroman is now able to navigate Manila’s streets without the aide of a driver or worrying about his SUV’s left-hand drive. “You adapt. You learn. Just like what we do in Smart Gilas.”
Though some quarters worry about burnout with their hectic schedule, it’s all going to plan says the coach. “Things are hard now especially with the tournaments we will be competing in – the Champions Cup, SEABA, the Jones Cup, and the Asian Games. But our schedule will get better and give them a little more room and space. By then it will all be easy.”
As for the dream of an Olympic slot in London?
“It has never been easy. That is why we do what we do.”
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