CALVIN Abueva suffered a freak injury on Tuesday when Gilas Pilipinas held practice for the second straight day at the Philsports Arena.
The 35-year-old forward dislocated his right thumb as he tried to pound the ball on a rebound play while going up against two Gilas big men.
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But Abueva popped the bone back in place and soon after, was running and huffing up and down the court again as if nothing happened.
Nonetheless, first aid was applied on the jammed finger by putting ice in order for the swelling to go down.
‘The Beast’ however, played down the injury.
“OK lang naman daw siya. Namaga lang 'yung thumb niya kaya medyo hirap daw siyang humawak ng bola,” related Danny Espiritu, the representative of Abueva, who was at the Gatorade Hoops Center in Mandaluyong on Tuesday for the PBA Draft Combine.
“Pero sabi niya tatalian lang daw naman yun, OK na ulit siya,” added the celebrated players’ agent. “Malayo raw sa bituka.”
The eccentric Magnolia veteran was a last-minute addition of interim coach Tim Cone to the Gilas roster bound for Hangzhou, China next week to do battle in the 19th Asian Games.
The stint marked the return of the former NCAA MVP out of San Sebastian to the national team after a five-year absence following his involvement in the infamous brawl that marred the Philippine-Australia World Cup qualifier at the Philippine Arena.
But now that he’s been given a chance to don the national colors again, Abueva said he’s certainly making the most out of the opportunity, injury nothwithstanding.
“Andito pa rin ako at lalaro. All-in pa rin ako,” Espiritu quoted his player as saying.
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