Little more than a year ago Nate Jawai was blind in one eye and couldn't dribble a basketball.
His memory was so bad he had to watch videos of himself and others to re-learn a game he had played for over a decade.
They were the long-lasting effects of a traumatic neck injury suffered while playing for Turkish club Galatasary in October 2013 and, unsurprisingly, took a toll on the 208cm-power forward.
"It was very hard," the 28-year-old told AAP.
"I couldn't dribble the ball when I started my rehab, I couldn't see from one eye.
"I had to build slowly."
After six months of intense rehabilitation at Canberra's Australian Institute of Sport, he earned a recall to the national team ahead of last year's FIBA World Cup.
While grateful for the faith Boomers coach Andrej Lemanis had shown in him, Jawai was disappointed he couldn't deliver on-court.
"It didn't go to plan," he admitted.
"It was frustrating because it wasn't me. I had to learn how to play again. It was sad because I had to watch videos."
But Lemanis persisted, and along with his assistant Luc Longley pushed Jawai to his limits.
He joined the Boomers for their tour of Europe late last month and remains part of the 12-man squad for their two-leg Rio Olympic qualifiers against New Zealand starting in Melbourne on Saturday.
Former NBA champion Longley, in particular, has stayed by Jawai's side.
"I have spent a lot of time with Nate and I've enjoyed working with him," Longley said.
"He's someone I figured I could help from early on in the campaign, so I have focused on him for sure."
Jawai said Longley had worked on his footwork and hand-eye co-ordination since the World Cup last year, and saw a marked improvement in the few weeks they spent in Europe.
"I'm heaps better than when I was in Europe because of him," he added.
But Longley's support was beyond the physical.
"I've been getting down on myself too much.
"After what I've been through with my injuries ... everything for me has been new.
"Mentally, he's been trying to prepare me before games and he's helped a lot.
"He's a big influence, him and Andrej, for me coming back on court.
"They've rejuvenated my career, actually.
"Having their trust, their support, means a lot.
"My relationship with Andrej has grown and I enjoy being around him and the team, even if it's for a minimal role.
"Before I probably would've complained but now it's alright, I like being a part of it."
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