ST. Benilde coach Charles Tiu won't stop Will Gozum from exploring greener pastures if the right offer comes.
The Blazers mentor bared that he has been in discussions with teams interested in the NCAA Season 98 MVP, but said he'll leave it up to Gozum to decide his next career move.
"We’ll have to decide what’s best for him," he said. "Obviously, if he has a great opportunity to play somewhere else, then I’d be the first person to encourage him to go."
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Tiu shared that even before the conclusion of the finals against Letran, he has talked with a few teams which are intrigued with what the 6-foot-7 big man can bring to the table.
"I’ve been talking to some teams also on his behalf without him knowing. Not that I’m his agent or anything, but we’re just always looking - even for JC [Cullar] and Jimboy [Pasturan] - where we can put them after this. For now, there’s no concrete offer, but it wouldn’t be hard to find Will a team abroad, to be honest," he said.
If it was Tiu to decide, though, he thinks that Gozum can still be better with one more playing year in Taft.
"I think as we all saw, there is still a lot of room for improvement in his game. I think deep down, he knows that he still needs a bit more seasoning," he said.
Gozum was held to just 10 points and two rebounds in CSB's 81-67 Game Three loss to Letran, and was even ejected for a headbutt late in the game. That should leave a bad taste in his mouth, enough to merit a revenge tour come NCAA Season 99.
Still, Tiu promised to back his star forward wherever his path may take him.
"Let’s see. To me, I’m okay if he stays, I’m okay if he doesn’t. We’ll just try to develop somebody else to try and help them become better players," he said.
"Whatever his decision is, we’ll support him. I’m ready to go with Will or without Will. Our goal here is to give guys the best opportunity for their careers, for their futures. If they feel that’s best for them, we support them. He was just the MVP, but for us, that’s up to him to decide."