By REYNALD MAGALLON
Veterans Japeth Aguilar and Leonard Santillan are expected to miss some games for their respective teams at the start of the PBA 50th Season.
Aguilar, according to Barangay Ginebra head coach Tim Cone, underwent surgery to repair a nagging finger injury while Santillan, on the other hand, sustained an MCL injury during Rain or Shine’s tuneup game against Meralco in Isabela.
“It’s going alright, he’s doing well. But he’s not doing basketball activities yet, he can’t handle the ball yet. So he’ll probably be out, probably our first game, maybe our second, and we’ll play it game by game after that,” Cone said of Aguilar.
Cone added that the injury has long bothered the 38-year-old forward and they found the offseason as the only time he could go under the knife.
Aguilar actually had the chance to immediately undergo surgery at the end of the Philippine Cup and not miss any games in the upcoming season. The veteran forward, however, decided to push back the operation to join Cone and Gilas Pilipinas in the FIBA Asia Cup.
There is no timetable yet for Aguilar’s return, revealed Cone.
Santillan, meanwhile, is expected to miss the Elasto Painters first couple of games as he needs three weeks to recover from the MCL injury.
Although nothing serious and doesn’t require surgery, the injury was a dampener for Rain or Shine, which have loaded up in the offseason with addition of Stanley Pringle and the return of Beau Belga.
“May kaunting setback lang kami kay Santi, Iyong last game namin against Meralco sa Isabela nagkaroon siya ng mcl tear,“ said Guiao.
“It is not serious but baka hindi siya umabot sa opening day but I think after two or three games makakalaro na siya,“ he added.
Also still recovering from a grade 3 ankle injury is CJ Perez of San Miguel.
Beermen head coach Leo Austria is expecting Perez to be available in the first few games of SMB, albeit in reduced capacity. Perez sustained the injury during the national teams campaign in the FIBA Asia Cup.
