Chris Ross set to rejoin SMB practices after quarantine period

Chris Ross arrived in the country Monday morning after a 2-month furlough in the United States.

The 38-year old Fil-Am left for Texas last November due to the sudden demise of his father, a war veteran.

“We lost my pops unexpectedly in November before the holidays, and it absolutely crushed me and my family. I’ve shed tears every single day since we lost him including right now,” wrote Ross on his Instagram account.

“I took time off from basketball to be around family but with the turn of the new year I’m in the process of pulling myself out of that dark hole. My pops would want nothing less,” he added.

SMB team manager Gee Abanilla confirmed the arrival of the 8-time PBA champion during a telephone interview with PBA Rush.

“His flight got delayed. But he’s here now and will spend five days under quarantine. He will be tested before he could join our practices,” said Abanilla.

Ross, a 2-time PBA Finals MVP, waited for his family to get settled before making the trip back to the Philippines. He last suited up for the Beermen during the team’s semifinals clash with eventual champion TNT in the 2021 Philippine Cup.

The league’s winningest franchise is currently on a three-game winning run after opening the Governors’ Cup with back-to-back defeats. The season-ending conference, however, has been put on hold once more due to the sudden spike of COVID-19 cases in the country.