Bernardino had reiterated during a meeting that he would retire at the end of the season due to health reason. He has been suffering from a heart ailment since last year.
PBA chairman Butch Alejo of Purefoods said that the board "felt bad" that Bernardino has planned to retire sooner than everybody expected.
"We were caught by surprise so we are not even prepared to come up with a short list (of candidates). We will come up with a list and then confer with the commissioner. It has to be done before the fourth quarter of the year," said Alejo.
Three names have been prominently mentioned as possible successor of the longest-serving chief of the pro league. They are PBA executive director Sonny Barrios, former PBA chair Rey Gamboa and former RFM team manager Elmer Yanga.
It’s the board’s prerogative as to who would replace Bernardino who said that " it has to go through a process."
In another development, the board is mulling the possibility of holding a midseason draft to accommodate MBA players who would be disenfranchised with the closure of the regional league.
"We will look into that," said Bernardino. " But while we symphatize with the MBA players who are to lose their jobs, we understand that several of our players might lose their jobs too by holding the draft."
Meanwhile, despite losing its last four games and moving on the verge of elimination, Purefoods, according to interim coach Ryan Gregorio, is still far from finished.
In fact, the former coach of the UP Maroons is quite confident that the Hotdogs can still make it all the way back to the top – in the same manner by which they won this year’s Governor’s Cup.
"We’re not losing hope. I just reminded everybody that last conference we were known as the comeback kids," said Gregorio, one of the youngest coaches ever to win a title in the PBA.
Gregorio is calling the shots for the Hotdogs in the absence of head coach Eric Altamirano, who is with the national team gearing up for the Busan Asian Games in September.
"But although this is a different situation, I think we can still prove that we can come back," said Gregorio, whose team is in the cellar with a 1-6 slate on a four-game losing skein.
Getting back on track, however, is easier said than done, considering that his top two quarterbacks – Ronnie Magsanoc and Roger Yap – will sit out tonight’s game against RP-Selecta.
The only thing going for Purefoods is the fact that RP-Selecta is on a similar skid, losing its last four games for an overall record of 2-5 heading into the closing stages of the elims.
The Nationals lost their opening game this conference to Ginebra then bounced back with two straight wins over San Miguel Beer and Talk N Text. But it’s been downhill ever since as they lost four in a row -- against Sta. Lucia, FedEx, Shell and Red Bull.
Only eight of the 12 teams will make it to the next round with Purefoods, RP-Selecta and Ginebra (2-6) needing a big turnaround just to avoid an early exit. And it has to start now.