Former Gilas Coach officially leading Team Indonesia for SEA Games

Toroman is the first coach of Gilas Pilipinas, then featuring college stars to represent the country. (File Photo: Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas/Facebook)

The Serbian coach confirmed the news last Wednesday, June 26 as he was present at the Smart Araneta Coliseum for the two matches of the 2019 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Commissioner’s Cup. In his words, “I will handle the Indonesian team to the SEA Games so I’ll be here a lot more times.” He also shared that he is currently in Manila as an assistant to the Mighty Sports, who is anticipating their next competition for the Jones Cup in Taipei in July.

Toroman is the first coach of Gilas Pilipinas, then featuring college stars to represent the country. 

In 2017, the Indonesian national team received silver during the 2017 Southeast Asian Games, hoping to improve their 2019 bid with the guidance of Toroman. When talking about facing the near the end of the year, he admits it won’t be a walk in the park, sharing, “It’s very difficult because we change some of the players and we have a new generation, some younger players. We still don’t know our naturalized player but of course, the Philippines is a big favorite to win the gold medal and the other teams will fight for the second position.” 

Indonesia will also be facing the same Philippine Team for the 2021 FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers, where they are joined by South Korea and Thailand in Group A. When asked if he will be guiding the Indonesians for that event as well, Toroman reveals, “My contract will be two (years) plus two. We will see. We have to go step by step, day by day. The goal will be to improve the team and be more competitive.”