NENAD Vucinic holds no grudges on how his stint with Gilas Pilipinas ended after he decided to no longer renew his services with Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP).
Speaking to The Game, the Serbian mentor said that he treasured his time with the national program but felt the urge to spread his wings abroad with the international leagues about to start.
Nenad Vucinic on leaving Gilas
"It was a great experience. We worked well together," he said of the federation as well as concurrent Gilas program director Chot Reyes.
"But now, with the new season sort of coming up, I reconsidered and thought that I may look for some other options."
Vucinic let his contract with the SBP expire and also left his post as a consultant for Meralco following the Bolts' ouster from the PBA Philippine Cup on Wednesday.
Nonetheless, the former New Zealand coach said that there's really no axe for him to grind when it comes with Gilas.
"I got nothing but really great things to say about the people, the program, that I came to. I tried to help as much as I could but for me I have to take a different path now," he said.
Vucinic was brought to the country by Tab Baldwin and was eventually hired as an assistant to Reyes in the February window of the 2023 Fiba World Cup Asian qualifiers.
He continued to steward Gilas and even took the lead in its pair of friendlies against Korea up to the third window of the Asian qualifiers last June.
Vucinic explained that after Baldwin left, he really wanted to follow suit but was prodded to stay on board.
"Initially, when I came to work with Gilas, I was invited by my good friend and mentor Tab Baldwin. And since he is not part of the program anymore, I really wanted to leave at that time," he said. "But I was convinced by him and also by incoming director Chot Reyes and all the other people in the organization to stay. I didn't regret staying."
Now, Vucinic gets a chance to explore his options abroad with his last overseas stint being with the Fujian Sturgeons in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA).
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