Cuban Basketball Players in Puerto Rico Hoping to Go Pro

HAVANA TIMES — The five Cuban basketball players who sought political asylum during the Centrobasket Tournament in Puerto Rico in June, expressed interest in playing professional basketball and going to college in that country.

Appearing on the Puerto Rican radio program “Cubaleaks Noticias,” Juan Pablo Pineiro, Ismael Romero Fernandez, Leonel Batista, Yudniel Perez Arango and Enrique Abad Ramos expressed their intention to continue their careers in that country.

The players’ representative, Sadia Mercedes, said three of the young people already have university offers, though she didn’t mention the names the institutions.

“Nobody offered us anything or encouraged us to desert and stay. Individually, we each decided to stay here. In my case, it was the only way to fulfill my dream of playing profession basketball,” said Ramos Abad.