BEIRUT (Lebanon) - Ahmad Farran knows what he wants.
That's precisely why he had zero reservations whatsoever in saying yes upon being offered to become the new head coach of Lebanon, as the Federation Libanaise de Basketball (FLB) deemed it best to turn the page in its esteemed men's team program.
"To be honest, I didn't hesitate because I felt that it's the right time," he said. "For a long time, I waited and thought about it. I wanted this. It's a big honor for any coach to lead his own country, his own national team."
It's been said countless times that coaching is one of the thankless jobs in all of sports, and the 44-year-old himself knows it so well being the lead think-tank of Lebanon's most decorated ball club in Al Riyadi.
But it's also his body of work not just with the Yellow Castle but with the previous organizations he worked for as well that's built this kind of belief within him that he's capable of manning the Cedars' sidelines one day.
Farran mentored Beirut Club to the Lebanese Basketball Championship in 2022 before coming back to Riyadi, whom he already steered to multiple championships before taking his act to the former.
It's not gonna be easy. But I believe with the commitment, with the right preparations, with the right players, we can do this.
And that return of his signaled what would be another reign of dominance for the popular team. Currently, they're the league's defending three-time champions, looking to extend their dominion to four this season.
It's not only at home in which they've become successful under his watch. Riyadi have completed a back-to-back title run in the FIBA West Asia Super League, as well as a three-peat in the WASL-West Asia competitions.
Then, they have won two of their three Basketball Champions League Asia (BCL Asia) crowns thanks to him, the most recent of which was in 2024 following a mighty five-game sweep of the tilt held in Dubai.
That memorable run in the 'City of Gold' enabled Riyadi to represent the continent in the FIBA Intercontinental Cup - FIBA's highest club competition - in that same year, where they made it as far as the Semi-Finals.
"When you go to FIBA WASL, to BCL Asia and you win, and you take your team to the Intercontinental Cup and you achieve all this, I think what was missing in my career is being the national team head coach," he reflected.
So, the federation no longer needed to look far in finding the replacement for Miodrag Perisic, wasting no time reaching out to Farran after a disappointing Quarter-Final exit in the FIBA Asia Cup 2025 in Saudi Arabia.
"The discussions started right after the FIBA Asia Cup in Jeddah," he said.
The rest is history, as they say, and a big reason why he found no difficulty in accepting the position was the massive support Riyadi themselves provided - plus the fans that have so much faith in his ability.
"What makes it so good is that the Lebanese fans and the Lebanese people are pushing me and encouraging me because they think that I can bring my success in Riyadi to the national team. Hopefully, we can," he added.
As glad as he is, Farran is under no illusion that it's going to be easy fulfilling the responsibilities and duties he has, knowing what his predecessors were able to build which helped shape Team Lebanon to what it is today.
His first order of business is preparing the squad the best he could for the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 Asian Qualifiers' opening window, which will be his acid test, too, as it would mark his debut at the helm.
The Window 1 games will be the start of the road to Qatar and getting there serves as one of his main objectives as coach, keen on bringing the Cedars to basketball's grandest stage for the fifth time.
"The national team of Lebanon achieved a lot of success starting from 2001, when they made it to the World Cup for the first time," he recalled when Lebanon took silver in the 2001 Asia Cup to reach the 2002 Worlds.
"Now we have four participations in the World Cup," he added. "Also, we have silver medals in [the Asia Cup], the Arab Cup, and in West Asia. I am here to continue this legacy, this success starting with the World Cup Qualifiers."
But of course, Farran and his unit are taking it one step at a time. One of their goals, actually, is to revive the glory days from just three years ago in which they sent a strong message to Asia - and to the world, eventually.
The Lebanese came close from dethroning Australia in the FIBA Asia Cup 2022 and that silver-medal finish brought the country back into prominence, to the point that those outside of the region took notice as well.
From beating Jordan Clarkson and the Philippines in the World Cup Qualifiers, they'd sent shockwaves to the rest of the World Cup proper in 2023 when they went toe-to-toe with no less than France but lost narrowly.
They then made noise in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Spain the following year, in which they beat Angola in the Group Phase to reach the Semi-Final before bowing to eventual runners-up Bahamas.
"Our aim now is to create a good team to bring back the spirit of the national team from 2022 and what they achieved in [the Asia Cup]. This is the goal," he said as the program won its fourth Asia Cup silver in that year.
"All of the nation is counting on me and on the players, so hopefully we will be successful - especially knowing that basketball in Lebanon is the first sport and all the Lebanese people live and die with this game."
Farran knows how challenging it could get, but he's embracing the pressure.
"Surely, it's a big opportunity and comes with a lot of challenges and pressure," he said. "It's not gonna be easy. But I believe with the commitment, with the right preparations, with the right players, we can do this."
FIBA