Minda kids vie for MVP ng Bayan

MANILA, Philippines - Two young men from Mindanao are the first to advance as finalists in the search for the first ever “Talk ‘N Text MVP ng Bayan”.

Kim Wesley Asulao of Davao City and Reuben Jay Baguio from Saranggani will have the chance to become the next basketball superstar from among millions of fans all over the Philippines.

“We are excited to open this door of opportunities to all talented basketball players among the youth, especially the underprivileged,” said Perry Bayani, head of marketing at Talk ‘N Text. “With the immense popularity of basketball in the country, we are confident that we can discover someone with real talent just waiting to be tapped.”

The search also aims to pool talent from the hundreds of barangay-level basketball leagues that Talk ‘N Text had supported all over the country in the last few weeks.

All male Talk ‘N Text subscribers, within the age range of 13-21 years, are welcome to join and test their basketball skills against other players in the regional tryouts. Talk ‘N Text is implementing the nationwide search in cooperation with the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

At the recently held Davao and Cebu regional tryouts, basketball fans turned up with the hopes of gaining one of the 12 finalist spots.

The next regional tryout is on May 29 in Malolos, Bulacan, June 5 at the Ortegas Gym in San Fernando, La Union and at the University of Batangas Gym, and June 12 at the Makati Coliseum.

Twelve finalists from the regional tryouts will compete at the national tryouts June 12 in Metro Manila.