JUAN Gomez de Liano followed in his brother Javi's footsteps, saying he will also skip this UAAP season for University of the Philippines.
The former Rookie of the Year and one-time Mythical Team member has opted not to join the Fighting Maroons this upcoming UAAP Season 83, although he kept the door open to a Diliman return for his last two playing years.
"I’m not closing my doors on Season 84. UP has been my home for seven years," the 6-foot-1 court general said.
The 20-year-old playmaker acknowledged the risk he's taking, but is looking at using this time to get better, especially after being included in the Gilas Pilipinas pool for the 2021 Fiba Asia Cup qualifiers.
"I’m not used to sitting out even just for a year. But I think this is the best decision," he said. "As of right now, I'm really focused on Gilas. I wanna represent the country again. It's truly an honor to represent the country. It's a no-brainer.
"Not everyone has the opportunity to represent and play for Gilas and I'm really gonna take advantage of this. I feel like it's a great start to help me and my basketball career and I'm just really grateful for the opportunity."
Gomez de Liano averaged 8.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.1 steals this past UAAP Season 82, where the Fighting Maroons just missed out on a return trip to the finals after losing to University of Santo Tomas in the Final Four.
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