Viet A Steel rejects transfer offer for young center from Taiwanese team

Hanoi — In a notable development on the Southeast Asian basketball transfer market in 2026, Viet A Steel Club (Ho Chi Minh City) reportedly rejected an economic offer from Chang Yung (Taiwan) to sign young center Le Minh Tuan, 21 years old. According to sources from Thao Duc Van Hoa newspaper (HCMC) and confirmed by Sports Weekly (Hong Kong), Chang Yung approached for the transfer in early October — during the mid-season break of the national basketball championship. The offer came after the team's foreign center was injured during a friendly match with the Korean national team in September. Notably, Le Minh Tuan's contract with Viet A Steel contains a clause allowing his departure to a team in the top-tier Asian basketball circuit — the ABC (Asian Basketball Confederation) league — but the clause only activates starting February 2026. Before that date, any transfer requires direct mutual agreement between both clubs. Viet A Steel head coach Tran Van Duc stated in an interview with Thao Duc Van Hoa: "Tuan is a key player in our defensive system. We have no intention of selling him at this time." Le Minh Tuan himself has reportedly made no public statements on the matter. Tactical analysis shows Chang Yung's approach was reactive rather than proactive. Their American-Ukrainian center, Keith Johnson, signed at the start of the season, has been sidelined for at least six weeks following shoulder surgery. With the ABC schedule dense from November onward, the Taiwanese team was clearly seeking a short-term replacement. However, a source from the Vietnam Basketball Federation (anonymous) stated that Viet A Steel values Le Minh Tuan's development potential and considers him a strategic asset in preparation for SEA Games 2026. "This is not a permanent refusal," the source emphasized. "It is a message that the transfer fee does not reflect his true value." Financially, details of Chang Yung's offer were not publicly disclosed. Observers note that Vietnamese clubs during this period lacked formal valuation mechanisms — most transfers depended on direct negotiations and sports authority intervention. From a professional perspective, this case reflects an emerging trend in regional basketball: major Asian clubs beginning to target young players from domestic leagues with notable physical and technical foundations. The question is whether the transfer clause benefits young players or merely protects local club interests — an issue Vietnamese professionals need to address soon as the regional basketball market increasingly integrates. The next development will depend on two factors: whether Keith Johnson recovers on schedule, and whether Chang Yung returns with a higher offer before February. For Viet A Steel, the current decision is a calculated retention move — not rigidity, but a strategy to price right in a still-opaque market. February 2026 — when the transfer clause officially activates — will be the real turning point. By then, both sides will have more information to price: Chang Yung will know Johnson's injury status, Viet A Steel will know how far Tuan has developed after a full season. And perhaps, another Asian club will enter the race. That derby, I lost my voice amid the noise — and found myself in the silence. This story is the same: it is not merely about a player who did not move, but about how a young sports industry learns to value itself in an opening market. Viet A Steel rejected — but the door is not closed.