BELGRADE NATIVES NENAD, RAJKO FACE OFF FOR THE FIRST TIME

WHEN Meralco and Converge clash on Wednesday in the PBA 49th Season Governors’ Cup, veteran Serbian coaches Nenad Vucinic and Rajko Toroman will square off in the sidelines for the first time ever.

Vucinic and Toroman both hold 'active consultant' roles in the PBA, where Nenad recently led Meralco its first-ever championship by beating San Miguel in the Philippine Cup Finals last season which Rajko watched from the sidelines.

"We are friends. 30 years," said Toroman. "We know each other long time ago. We are in the same town. Belgrade."

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Though they are friends, Toroman said their paths haven’t crossed during games. Neither has he worked with Vucinic, who also has New Zealand lineage, although he admitted following Vucinic’s coaching career.

Aside from coaching the Tall Blacks, Vucinic has also coached at the club level in New Zealand where he won three championships. He also had coaching stints in Estonia, Lebanon, and China, before joining Gilas Pilipinas and later Meralco.

"He was working a lot outside of the country. But sometimes, he will come back again in Serbia. He is an experienced coach. He was coaching New Zealand. He was coaching in Turkey, which is not easy to get a job there. He is a very good coach," said Toroman.

PHOTO: Ivy Ferrer

Just like last conference, Toroman will again be at a Meralco game this conference, but this time, on the other side of the court after his appointment as consultant of Converge prior to the season.

The Bolts and the FiberXers clash at 5 p.m. at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.

Toroman said he is happy with Vucinic’s recent success, especially after he and the Bolts achieved it against a stacked San Miguel squad in the finals.

READ How Nenad went from leaving Gilas to winning PBA title at Meralco

The former Gilas Pilipinas coach, who is returning to the PBA for the first time since taking on consultancy roles with Petron and Barako Bull, said it was the system that carried the Bolts to the victory.

"I’m very happy because I think that he gave Meralco a great result. Nobody expect it especially in the beginning where they were struggling. They almost go out of the playoff," said the veteran coach.

"But step-by-step, he made a lot of good things in Meralco. He established a good system. That was probably the crucial thing against San Miguel," Toroman added.

PHOTO: Jerome Ascano

Toroman said the entertainment brought by that Meralco-San Miguel finale to the fans also gave the PBA a shot in the arm.

"If you watch the individual quality of the players, I think that San Miguel has some advantage. But at the end of the day, the system and the team won. That’s my opinion. It was a very exciting [series] especially the last game.

"Newsome made a crucial two points at the end of the game. This is the reason why this final give a hope to the PBA to go a little bit higher after," said Toroman.

2024-09-04T06:13:38Z dg43tfdfdgfd