Japeth Aguilar to miss start of PBA’s 50th season due to hand injury

Barangay Ginebra San Miguel big man Japeth Aguilar is set to sit out the first few games of the PBA’s historic 50th season as he is still recovering from a hand injury.

Aguilar underwent surgery on his left hand after Gilas Pilipinas’ campaign in the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup last August.

Ginebra head coach Tim Cone confirmed that Aguilar will sit out Ginebra’s opener and said that there is yet to be a timetable for his return.

“Japeth is going to be out probably for the first few games. We don’t know exactly when he’ll be back,” he said. “He’ll be out probably our first game, maybe our second, and we’ll play it game by game after that.”

“The day after he arrived from Saudi Arabia, he had his surgery done. It’s going alright, he’s doing well, but he’s not doing basketball activities yet. He can’t handle the ball yet,” the coach added.

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Japeth Aguilar serves up a highlight in Gilas-Adelaide tuneup pic.twitter.com/Eb2nsi4cPi

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Cone added that the longtime Gin King had been playing through lingering issues with his finger for more than a year and a half.

The veteran coach also admitted the tough decision of letting Aguilar undergo surgery either after last season and be ready for Ginebra’s golden season opener or after the Asia Cup, which the team and the big man eventually decided.

“There was a choice to do it right after the conference, and then he would be ready for the first game. Or go to Saudi Arabia for the Asia Cup and then do the surgery after that, knowing he’d miss the first couple of games,” Cone said.

“We thought about it, but we just felt like the Asia Cup was too important. We kind of forced him to go to the Asia Cup rather than stay here and do his surgery,” he added.

Gilas reached the quarterfinals but bounced out of the tournament after falling short against Australia.

For Cone, Aguilar sitting out the first few games will be beneficial for both parties in the future, as he is set to rely on other big men such as Troy Rosario, newly-acquired Norbert Torres, and the 11th overall pick of the recent draft Sonny Estil.

“At least it’s something that’s going to be taken care of. We’re not going to have to worry about it anymore. We think it’ll help him in the long run.”

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