JAVI Gómez de Liaño bared his parting wish for his now-disbanding former PBA team Terrafirma amid the uncertainty of its franchise’s sale.
READ: Terrafirma disbands team amid uncertainty of franchise sale
And it’s one fans have long echoed over the Dyip’s over a decade run in the league.
“Hopefully, hindi magiging kulelat,” Gomez de Liaño said while donning his Terrafirma uniform at Strong Group-Pilipinas practice on Wednesday.
GDL was drafted eighth overall by Ginebra in 2022 before being shipped to the Dyip in a deal that included Jeremiah Gray and Brian Enriquez.
In the two years he spent with Terrafirma, players came and went fast just as the team started to find the first few pieces of what could’ve been a long-term core.
Gone in a flash were the likes of now-Ginebra hotshots Stephen Holt and Isaac Go along with San Miguel guard Juami Tiongson.
What tomorrow brings to Terrafirma
Like many others keeping a close eye in the PBA, Gómez de Liaño knew that Terrafirma once had more than enough tools at its disposal to shed its reputation of acquiring future stars to only let them shine elsewhere.
The past is in the past, but GDL knows that the future can still look different under new leadership.
“Terrafirma is known for not having a winning culture. During my second year with the team na we got Juami, Stephen Holt, the rest of the core, those players including me, we wanted to win,” he said.
“When you have players with winning mindsets, it can really turn around a franchise. Whichever team buys Terrafirma and if ever I decide to come back, I want to bring that winning mindset back.”
Over a year since taking his talents to the Korean Basketball League with Anyang Jung Kwan Jang Red Boosters, it’s all love and hoping for a completely different future for whichever road the Dyip will take.
“No hard feelings. I really respect the team, the organization, the management. This is life, I guess. Things didn’t turn out the way we wanted, but I still respect them, made a lot of friends there and good relationships,” he said.
“Moving on from that, I’m just working on the next opportunity that I’ll be getting.”
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