‘May worth pa pala ako sa ibang school,’ says Cansino
New University of the Philippines recruit CJ Cansino expressed gratitude to fellow collegiate stars who reached out to him after his departure from the Tigers’ lair.
Speaking to Carmela Tunay’s “Anong Tunay?!” show Saturday, Cansino bared feeling happy after several stars from UAAP and NCAA schools extended their messages via Twitter.
The likes of La Salle stars Aljun Melecio and Andrei Caracut, UP’s Juan Gomez de Liano and Ricci Rivero, Ildefonso brothers – Dave and Shaun, among others, joined the mock Twitter recruitment or the so-called ‘Cansino sweepstakes’ the past few days.
The 20-year-old Cansino said he felt “heartbroken” after the management decided to kick him out of the men's basketball team, adding that he had lost self-confidence and self-esteem.
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“Ang tunay na naramdaman ko noon, UST ‘yung nagbigay ng chance na maabot ko ‘yung pangarap ko, tapos UST din pala ‘yung mag-aalis nun,” the former UAAP juniors’ MVP said.
“Sabi ko, ‘May kukuha pa kaya sa akin?’ Kasi meron akong feeling na wala na.”
Upon hearing the news, Cansino quickly doubted his dream to get a college degree and eventually become a professional basketball player.
But thanks to UP, who handed him that second chance, and the overflowing messages, Cansino managed to get back to his feet.
“’Yung nakita ko yung mga kalaban ko, mga players ng ibang school mga superstar pa, biglang bumalik yung kumpyansa ko na meron pa pala akong worth – may worth pa pala ako sa ibang school,” said Cansino, who has been with University of Santo Tomas since Tiger Cubs days in the juniors' division.
“’Yun ‘yung respect na na-earn ko sa kanila. Nakakalaban ko sila pero gusto pala nila akong maging kampi. Sobrang tuwang tuwa ko, sobrang thankful ako.”
Cansino, for the first time, later confirmed the move from Espana to Diliman in the show.