Questions lingered after the Meralco Bolts’ management decided to suspend Kelly Nabong indefinitely on Tuesday afternoon. Some said that it was because he had yet to apologize to assistant coach Jimmy Alapag, while some thought that it was because of a misunderstanding with the team officials.
Right after Meralco’s 98-74 Game Two win over the Star Hotshots, third-year Meralco coach Norman Black shed light on what had gone on during the team’s meeting Tuesday that led to the suspension.
“Obviously he’s not happy with his playing time and that’s sad, because we’re trying to win a championship now,” disclosed Black.
Nabong, 28, is averaging 10.92 minutes per contest this conference, down from the 16.5 and 17.7 minutes he played during the Philippine and Commissioner’s Cup respectively. Making matters worse for Nabong was a trade that brought Ranidel De Ocampo to the Bolts last September 11.
And even with the wins coming for the Bolts, Black shared that Nabong has been disgruntled with the minutes he was getting, erupting in a tirade last Sunday.
“We wanted Kelly to be part of what’s going on here but he’s not happy with the situation right now with the team,” admitted the eight-time champion coach, who is trying to steer Meralco to their first-ever championship.
“We suspended him indefinitely until we can sort it out.”
Black remains hopeful that the two camps can still sort things out before Game Three tips off on Thursday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.
