HIGH-FLYER Rhenz Abando is keeping a low profile these days as he awaits his next assignment.
Overseas, most likely.
Except for occasional sightings in training videos on social media, not much news has been heard about one of the most exciting players today since the basketball calendar started with him strangely not signed by any team, local or overseas.
READ Rhenz Abando skipped PBA rookie draft because of this
The former Letran and UST star broke ties with his team in the Korean Basketball League (KBL) for two seasons, Anyang JKJ Red Roosters, last May and was expected to sign his next overseas contract in the weeks that followed.
KBL and Japan B.League signings by Filipino imports were announced left and right with the Abando camp oddly silent. The PBA Rookie Draft took place, but that, too, was a hard pass for the flamboyant guard.
In short, basketball leagues around Asia rolled off without Abando signing on the dotted line.
So what happened to Abando?
According to his camp, the Santo Tomas, La Union native fielded a number of offers at that time, including from teams in Japan and Korea, both from his former club and from another which Javi Gomez de Liano eventually joined, a source bared.
His camp also considered an offer from the same European league where Thirdy Ravena ended up playing. There, too, were inquiries from, would you believe, a team based in the Dominican Republic, people close to Abando bared.
Not a single one panned out.
That Abando failed to sign a single contract may be bad for his finances, but not all bad, according to people close to him, since he has used the time away to regain full fitness since suffering a back injury off a scary fall in a KBL game last December.
Contacted for comment, Abando's agent, Marvin Espiritu, bared the 6-foot-2 former NCAA rookie-MVP has put the time away from the limelight to good use, working out regularly with a personal trainer.
"He's now 100 percent and ready to commit to a new team," said the partner at Espiritu Manotoc Basketball Management of his client, who last saw action for Strong Group in its run to the Jones Cup championship in Taiwan last July.
"A midseason signing is a possibility," Espiritu added.
At the moment, Espiritu said the Abando camp is weighing its next move. He shrugged off the months that Abando sat out without a regular wage, saying the soft-spoken player is 'low maintenance' and spends his money wisely.
How about a stint in a local league to keep him busy?
Espiritu didn't sound enthusiastic about the idea. Abando skipped the last PBA Rookie Draft and for the 26-year old to entertain playing in the pro league in the future, Espiritu said the stars will need to align.
"It has to be the right circumstances," Espiritu said.
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