Calvin Abueva and the Phoenix Fuel Masters still do not know what hurdles, or how many, Abueva has to clear before he can return to the Phoenix Fuel Masters.
Phoenix coach Louie Alas said Wednesday that Calvin Abueva only recently learned he needed to write a letter to the Games and Amusement Board (GAB) to explain his side of the June 2 altercation with TNT import Terrence Jones.
"I just learned yesterday that GAB wrote, saying that Calvin had to explain what happened between him and Jones. That should have been done earlier," Alas said Filipino after the team's loss to San Miguel. "Calvin was able to write a letter addressed to the GAB chairman Abraham Mitra earlier today."
Alas said Abueva and the team still don't know what is required to reinstate Abueva. "There aren't any parameters. It's not clear. I asked a lawyer, who said that there should be paremeters if a player is suspended indefinitely. That's the advice given to us. There has to be some clarification because it seems like his rights are being violated," Alas said.
Alas said the team is formulating a game plan for when Abueva is allowed to return to the team.
"We're looking at putting him in rehab for anger management. Well, it's not necessarily anger management, but we're looking at having him work on how he reacts to situations," Alas said. "I told him to tone it down because if he keeps his emotions in check, we don't have any problems with him. He's a good person anyway."
Phoenix is 3-5 without Abueva and hasn't allowed him to join practices.
"He goes to the Upper Deck [in Ortigas]. We have a gym upstairs, he practices there. After the team practice, he goes down to where we practice to put up some shots," said Alas.
Alas is still hoping that he sees Abueva back on the floor soon, whether it's this conference or in the Governors' Cup.
"We all know what Calvin brings. A bit of a high risk but the rewards are high," he said. "If he gets reinstated, he's not going to be in game shape. But that's okay with me because that's still an extra warm body in games. And Calvin is Calvin, he'll be able to help in some way."