KUALA LUMPUR (Mageshwaran’s AsiaScope) - Jordan made the headlines recently roping in the legendary Rajko Toroman as the coach of their national team. Given the rich and proven credentials of the coach in this part of the world, it was only a matter of time before the 59-year-old Serbian landed a national team top job since moving away from his consultant role with Barako Bulls in the PBA. It was never a question of 'IF', but always questions of 'When and Who'.

Personally speaking, Rajko has always been a favorite for his extremely professional attitude and approach on the bench to all teams he has coached so far. He has undoubtedly been one of the few coaches that I have come across who uses the most appropriate language even when they are the angriest.

Toroman's credentials of taking a team to top levels starting from scratch are well documented and need no elaboration.

If in 2007 he proved that he can turn an ambitious and upcoming Iranian program into an extremely professional and solid international team that saw Team Melli reach the top at the 24th FIBA Asia Championship in Tokushima, Japan, two years later, Toroman went about plotting and putting together an excellent program of reinvention in the basketball-crazy Philippines that saw the team go all the way to the Semi-Finals of the 26th FIBA Asia Championship in Wuhan, China in 2011.

If with Iran it was a matter of giving the team a strong and solid identity in international basketball, with the Philippines it was a matter of instilling the team with a lot of self belief. On both counts, Toroman emerged with flying colors. No two opinions on that.

The most common factor in both situations for Toroman was the unflinching support he got from the entire administration in either of these national federations - I.R.Iranian BF and SBP. This factor is what the Jordan BF has to provide - for want of a better phrase - on a platter to Toroman if this appointment has to reach the logical conclusion.

It's certainly out of context to at least fleetingly recall the turmoil that the Jordanian national federation has faced in supporting the national team's coach especially when it came to taking the development program to the next level despite reaching dizzying heights at FIBA Asia level. This was the case when Jordan went to the 2010 FIBA World Championship in Turkey and again when they went to the 2012 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament, both after attaining unprecedented success in the preceding FIBA Asia Championship.

That said, the current disposition which took charge under the dynamic and influential Samer Asfour less than a year ago must be commended for choosing Toroman as the chief helmsman for its resurrection. No better man for the job. But this is only half the job done.

And the most appropriate way to do the other half is to let Toroman complete the job, on his own terms and in his own inimitable style.

The golden generation of Jordanian basketball is long gone. This is the reality of time. There is no more Zaid Alkhas, Ayman Idais, Enver Soobzokov and Fadi Saqa. Very soon more names like Sam Daghles, Zaid Abbas and Wesam Al-Sous will join this list. And certainly finding replacements for these illustrious names will be tougher than walking through the breathtaking sights in Petra.

But if any man can put Jordan on the path of rejuvenation it is Toroman. He has done it before with Iran. He did it again with Smart Gilas. And he can do it again with the Al Nashama. Only if the top brass give him total freedom - in every sense of the word.

As Daghles - who has committed to representing the national team at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, Korea (19 September-4 October) put it: "Toroman is a proven coach. He led Iran to their first Olympics in 2008 and revitalised the Filipino national team to be able to compete with the power national teams in Asia again. He's definitely a basketball savvy coach.

"But I think coach will need this whole summer along with continuous work till next summer to improve the young talent to be able to compete in the FIBA Asia Championship in 2015," said Daghles after his practice session with the national team in more than two years.

As for Toroman himself, he has set pragmatic targets for the team.

"Our immediate target is the 2014 Incheon Asian Games, which will be a test of what we do in the next six months. Our long term target would be next year's FIBA Asia Championship," he told me during an interview for the FIBA Asia website.

In Toroman, Jordan have chosen a great tonic for their revival. But the treatment can only be complete if there's total trust in the man at the helm.

Here's wishing the best to a truly great coach!

So long…

S Mageshwaran

FIBA Asia

FIBA's columnists write on a wide range of topics relating to basketball that are of interest to them. The opinions they express are their own and in no way reflect those of FIBA.

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