By Leobert Julia A. de la Peña
Ricci Rivero’s international professional basketball dreams will have to wait after the Taoyuan Pilots released him from the official playing roster in the Taiwan P. League.
Due to a recurring injury, the Taiwanese basketball club decided to let the Filipino superstar go a week before the season kicks off on November 12, 2022.
The Pilots made it clear that the move was a mutual decision and was also specified by the club’s General Manager Sean Chen in a statement.
Rivero was able to participate in the preseason and played for the Pilots in all the scheduled games against New Taipei and the Taishin Dreamer team.
The former UAAP champion was placed under minutes restriction but still managed to put up highlights including several circus assists and crossovers.
“GM Sean Chen said it was a hard decision. He considers Ricci a very skilled player with a great attitude. However, due to his injury, Ricci wouldn’t be able to compete at his best level for the upcoming regular season games,” said the team.
After leading the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons to its first UAAP championship title after 36 years, Rivero immediately turned heads and was acquired by the Pilots to play as their Asian import.
From an all-offensive player with the DLSU Green Archers, Rivero evolved into an all-around guard and quickly made an impact after transferring to UP.
Rivero ended his UAAP campaign and final eligible playing year with 13.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.3 steals per game.
“Ricci joined the team in September. His past injury made him unable to show his best performance during training and preseason games. Wishing you the best Ricci! Good luck,” wrote the team in a statement.
