Philippine prospect forward Tamayo has become a free body. The contract was terminated by mutual agreement with Ryukyu.
The Ryukyu Golden Kings of Japan’s B.League announced the termination of their contract with Kal Tamayo (23, 202 cm) on their official website on the 18th.마카오토토도메인
Tamayo is a big prospect in the Philippines. He is 202cm tall and can play both inside and outside. He has scoring ability and can also throw 3-pointers. He also has excellent ball handling ability compared to his height. In 2022, when the Asian quarter system was expanded to the Philippines, multiple KBL teams were interested in him, but all of them refused and joined Ryukyu.
However, Tamayo faced high barriers in the B. League. In 15 regular league games during the 2022-2023 season, he only garnered 2.7 points and 1.3 rebounds for an average of 8 minutes and 13 seconds. While Ryukyu continued his winning streak at the playoffs and won the final, Tamayo was not at his best. He played an average of 12 minutes and 27 seconds in 23 regular league games this season, and failed to show satisfactory performance with 3.9 points and 2.5 rebounds. In the end, he chose to break up with Ryukyu under mutual agreement.
Tamayo, who has become a free-body, has now opened the way to join the KBL. However, chances are not high right now. All 10 KBL teams already have Asian quarter players with Filipino nationality, and most of them play key roles in their teams. Moreover, the KBL has an annual salary cap of 160,000 U.S. dollars, which makes it questionable whether Tamayo will come to Korea by lowering his ransom.
Currently, Tamayo is reportedly looking into contracts with other B.League clubs. Local media outlet INQUIRER.NET in the Philippines reported the termination of Tamayo’s contract with Ryukyu on the 18th, saying, “Tamayo’s agency has decided to find another B.League club that can show more skills and contribute to the team.”
A Korean official who is fluent in overseas basketball also said, “In the past, several teams in the KBL were interested in Tamayo. As rumors spread that Tamayo would come out of Ryukyu, one team had been keeping a close eye on him until recently. However, I understand that the agency prefers the B. League to the KBL.”
Tamayo is certainly an attractive card in the KBL, where only one player can participate, rather than the B. League, where two foreign players play together. Currently, the season is in full swing, so chances are slim, but we don’t know what will happen in the offseason. This is why we need to pay attention to whether we will be able to see Tamayo playing in the KBL in the future and his future.