MANILA, Philippines – It is uncertain when Greg Slaughter will be suiting up for Barangay Ginebra again after suffering a dislocated finger during one of their practice sessions.

The seven-foot Slaughter injured his right thumb and was forced to sit out as Barangay Ginebra pulled off a hard-fought 96-93 victory over TNT in the PBA Governors’ Cup on Friday, November 8.

“We’re still unsure how long Greg will be out,” coach Tim Cone bared after the game. “We’re hoping it’s a few days, but we can’t really tell. We didn’t see any ligament damage in the MRI. That was a clear dislocation.”

“You could see his finger was dangling when he got hit during practice,” Cone added.

Barangay Ginebra has two remaining elimination round matches – against Columbian on November 15 and versus NorthPort on November 17. 

The two are must-win games with Barangay Ginebra seeking to secure a spot in the top 4 in order to clinch a twice-to-beat incentive in the quarterfinals.

Currently, Barangay Ginebra and San Miguel are tied at No. 4 with identical 6-3 cards, so a loss would likely dictate which team will get the playoff bonus. 

That is why Cone has his fingers crossed that Slaughter, who norms 10.6 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks, will return as soon as possible. 

“We’re hoping within a week [that] he can come back, but we’ll never know. It could be longer. We’ve had cases where those kind of thumb injuries can last a month or two,” Cone added. 

Also, Cone will miss Slaughter for Gilas Pilipinas, which has shifted its preparations for the Southeast Asian Games into high gear with upcoming tune-up games against Alab Pilipinas and a team from Taiwan. 

“Hopefully he’ll be available for the national team. Hate to lose another guy in the national team,” Cone said. – Rappler.com