12 teams were said to participate in the bubble tourney in which each team is allowed to have a maximum of 25 personnel including coaches, staff, and officials.

However, as per the disclosure of Phoenix’s team manager Paolo Bugia, they were restricted to include Abueva.

“After clarifying, because of Calvin’s current status, we can only submit a 24-man lineup at the moment,” team manager Paolo Bugia wrote in a text message to Tiebreaker Times.

Last July, Abueva was fined for sanctions and penalties due to his act for engaging with a fan in a verbal altercation and a verbal spat with Bobby Ray Parks’ girlfriend Maika Rivera.

He was fined a total of Php 70,000 and received a sanction of indefinite suspension which Abueva has not yet been freed.

Commissioner Willie Marcial pointed out that Abueva’s actions should not be tolerated as players are expected to maintain a level of professionalism.

It’s been over a year since Abueva’s incident, and according to Marcial, Calvin still has things to process before he could return even though he has accomplished all the requirements the league asked him to do.

Abueva joined the Phoenix back in 2018 at the time the team needed him the most and since then relied on his hustling plays.

Nicknamed as “The Beast” after winning three NCAA men’s basketball titles with Letran, Phoenix has not yet let go of its hope to have Calvin in their side of the court once again.

“We are still awaiting final word from the PBA and still hopeful a decision will come before the opening,” Bugia shared.