GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — The world’s tallest teenager may have to wait a year to become the world’s tallest college basketball player.
Olivier Riou, a 7-foot-9 freshman who has a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records, plans to redshirt, Florida coach Todd Golden said Thursday. If the popular Canadian had played in even one game, he would have burned one of his four college seasons.
Instead, Ryu will spend the 2024-25 season practicing with his teammates and honing his skills — and will still be a freshman next fall.
“I should have made that clear (before),” Golden said. “Honestly, it put him in a difficult position. He’s sitting there at the end of games and everyone is yelling at him and trying to get him out of there. They didn’t understand that this was our potential plan for him.
“And that’s where we are at the moment. I’m not saying that’s going to be the plan 100%. We’re going to continue to talk to him and see if he changes what he wants to do. But as of now, that’s the plan that we’re going to make with him as we move forward.”
Florida students chanted “Oli” at both of the team’s home games this season. Golden emptied the bench in the final minutes of an 86-62 win over Grambling State on Monday night, and even said a few words to Ryu during the chaotic scene.
“I was just explaining to him, ‘The reason I’m not hiring you now is what we talked about a little bit,'” Golden said. “This wasn’t a choice I made for him. This is something people (from) our program talked to him and his family and his parents and his AAU coach and tried to figure out the best path for him.”
“I just went up to him and said, ‘Hey, I’m not trying to be disrespectful to you. I’m just not trying to burn your year by putting you on for 30 seconds.
Golden said Rio handled the decision well.
“He’s a great kid, and he’s fun,” Golden said. “He wants to do what other people think is best for him. And he’s coachable. Again, if that’s what our staff and his parents and people around him who care about him think is best, I think he’ll be comfortable. Ultimately, it’s his decision.” But I think that’s where it’s going to land.”
___
AP College Basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll
