Has ‘The Beast’ been tamed?
PHOENIX forward Calvin Abueva has been away from the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) for more than a year now as a result of an indefinite suspension slapped on him by the league because of several unpleasant incidents that he got involved in.
The Games and Amusements Board (GAB) chairman Baham Mitra is hopeful that Abueva’s time away from the game has tamed him a little bit.
Popularly known as “The Beast,” the 6-foot-2 forward got embroiled in one brouhaha after another.
First was an incident wherein he was accused of making lewd gestures to a fan which days later, was followed by his horrific clothesline of Talk N Text import Terrence Jones. Aside from the indefinite suspension, Abueva was also fined a whopping P70,000.
And while the clamor for the lifting of Abueva’s ban has been going on for quite some time now, Games and Amusements Board chairman Baham Mitra reiterated that they are going to stay hands-off from that case unless there is a need to. But he is hoping that Abueva has indeed turned a new leaf, if and when he is reinstated into the PBA.
“Ngayon kung nadisplina na siya, he can probably present what steps and proper therapy sessions he has undergone. And then if he convinces the board, then okay lang din lang sa amin (Now that he has already been disciplined, he can probably present what steps and proper therapy sessions he has undergone. And then if he convinces the board, then it will be fine with us),” Mitra said.
During his suspension, Abueva has engaged in numerous community service activities, during the Taal volcano explosion and the Covid-19 pandemic. He has also mentioned going through psychological sessions although he has yet to complete them all because of the health crisis.
Mitra added that he is looking forward to Abueva getting another chance to prove himself.
“Ako, I believe in him. He’s a very good player, talagang very athletic tsaka prolific tsaka makakatulong sa team. Pero sana naman, mag-tame down na ng konti. Sana mag-comply din siya (I believe in him. He’s a very good player, very athletic, prolific and is a great asset to the team. But I hope he tames down a little. I hope he complies),” said Mitra.