Tolentino leaves NorthPort in PBA for Korea's Seoul SK Knights

MANILA, Philippines -- Arvin Tolentino is heading to the Land of the Morning Calm.

Tolentino, who won the Best Player of the Conference award with the NorthPort Batang Pier in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup, has signed with the Seoul SK Knights in the Korean Basketball League, the team announced Friday.

The SK Knights said that Tolentino’s contract will run through the 2025-26 season.

But with this, the team released Juan Gomez de Liano.

The 29-year-old Tolentino, one of the best small forwards in the PBA, will bring his all-around prowess and scoring punch for Seoul.

Last conference, he led the Batang Pier to a semifinal berth. In the import-laden tournament, he averaged 20.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.1 blocks per contest.

In the All-Filipino conference, Tolentino managed just two games and averaged 17.0 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game.

The SK Knights are coming off a seven-game loss against Carl Tamayo and the Changwon LG Sakers in the KBL Finals.