By JEREMIAH SEVILLA
Greg Slaughter has apologized to the Barangay Ginebra management for “any misunderstanding” caused by his decision to take a sabbatical while also expressing his wish to make a comeback.
Through an Instagram story on Tuesday, Slaughter made the apology to San Miguel Corporation’s president Ramon S. Ang and sports director Alfrancis Chua for his decision to take a break and fly to the United States to train after his contract expired last January.
“My only regret is that the communication between myself and (the) management, particularly Boss RSA and Coach Alfrancis Chua, did not go smoothly as I would have wanted,” said the 32-year-old cager.
“I want to apologize to them and the rest of (the) management for any misunderstanding or bad feelings that may have occurred because of my decision,” he added.
The four-time PBA champion explained that his choice to take a step out of Ginebra “was purely to improve myself both as a person and as a basketball player.”
The one-time Best Player of the Conference honed his game in the US for several months and signed with the agency BeoBasket which represents NBA players Nikola Jokic, Dario Saric, Cedi Osman, among others.
He returned to the country in October and married his longtime girlfriend Schinina Juban on December 10, a day after the Kings ruled the PBA Philippine Cup under a bubble setup.
“Basketball has been my life for close to 30 years and I needed to step away for a while in order to start enjoying the game again. The time away has made me a better person in all aspects and now, as a married man, I am very excited at the prospect of being able to play again.”
Slaughter, the top draft pick in 2013 and Rookie of the Year in 2014, is hoping for a reunion with Ginebra, just like what coach Tim Cone is looking forward to when they try to defend their all-Filipino title next season.
“My only wish now for the coming year is to leave that in the past and have the opportunity to suit up again for the best fans in the world,” said the former UAAP titlist from Ateneo.
“I have learned so much this past year and I am excited to show everyone that the next phase of my career will be the best one yet.”
