Rajko Toroman makes his return. —FILE PHOTO
Rajko Toroman, the Serbian who did the blueprint of the Gilas Pilipinas program more than a decade ago, is returning to the country to help numerous programs, counting two in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Converge FiberXers in the Philippine Basketball Association.
Toroman was reportedly set to plane on Wednesday and will immediately buckle down to work with College of St. Benilde and Letran in NCAA, Converge and all other involvement that Strong Group has in the game.
The Serbian brings with him a wealth of international experience, counting stints as Gilas Pilipinas head coach and most recently, as chief tactician of Indonesia in the Southeast Asian Games.
“I’m absolutely thrilled,” St. Benilde coach Charles Tiu said in an official statement released by Strong Group. Tiu bared that Toroman initially declined an invitation a couple of years back because of commitments in Bahrain.
Toroman was the Philippine men’s national basketball team coach from 2009 to 2011 before taking over the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) teams Petron and Barako Bull. During that period, Tiu was part of his coaching staff.
“It’s coming full circle for me,” Tiu said. St. Benilde will try to get over the hump, having finished second to Letran last season when the Knights were still under the backing of San Miguel Corp.
Toroman, who had current Gilas mentor Chot Reyes in his staff when the program saw birth, will be joining Paolo Layug, Carlo Tan, Gabby Severino, Marvin Bienvenida and JC Cullar on Tiu’s staff.
Aldin Ayo handles the FiberXers, who have been contending solidly in their young PBA participation.
Beyond assisting those teams, Toroman will also conduct coaching clinics across the country, aligning with the main goal of Strong Group Athletics, which is to elevate Philippine basketball.