Pro league convenes planning session

MANILA, Philippines - The PBA will hold a planning session in Incheon on Tuesday and take the opportunity to show support for the Philippine national basketball team now in the quarterfinals of the Asian Games.

PBA commissioner Chito Salud and media bureau chief Willie Marcial left for the Korean city on a PAL flight early Friday morning while PBA chairman Patrick Gregorio departed in the afternoon. The PBA Board of Governors and executive staff will fly to Incheon tomorrow.

Today, the Philippines will close out the quarterfinal round against Kazakhstan at the Hwaseong Sports Complex. The semifinals are set on Wednesday and the finals on Friday.

Salud said the planning agenda will consist of laying out the 40th anniversary programs and celebrations to communicate more widely the PBA’s founding values and keys to success, reviewing the conference formats and rules to enhance competition and fan interest, assessing the PBA’s future support for Gilas, enhancing the PBA D-League’s growing role in player development, discussing initiatives to bring games to fans outside Metro Manila and the country and establishing team membership expansion policy.

Marcial said representatives of new PBA teams N-Lex, Blackwater and Kia Motors will attend the planning session. During the recent FIBA World Cup in Spain, the PBA held a meeting to review last season’s performance and since it was in retrospect, the Board excluded the new members. In Incheon, N-Lex will be represented by Metro Pacific Tollways president/CEO Ramoncito Fernandez, Blackwater by Ever Bilena COO Silliman Sy and Kia Motors by Columbian Autocar Corp. president Ginia Domingo.

“There are several proposals on the table to be discussed,” said Marcial. “A priority will be the chairman’s inputs. We will be taking up the formats of the three conferences, including height restrictions for imports. We will look into a handicapping formula for the Governors Cup and a proposal to bring in Asian reinforcements who could contribute to a wider fan base for the PBA. Imagine if Kia Motors took in a Korean import. Surely, the large Korean community in the country will go all out to support Kia. The same for a team with a Chinese import who could solidify support from the Chinese community.”

Marcial said it’s likely at least one existing team will change brand identity this season but he declined to disclose details for the moment. “We’re very excited to launch the first conference,” he said. “The opening doubleheader is scheduled on Oct. 19. We did a second ocular inspection of the Philippine Arena recently and the Gared basketball systems, flooring, dugouts, lighting and scoreboards are all first-class. The rate for the use of the facility is the same as what is being charged by other venues. The contract is now with the Philippine Arena and we expect it to be signed within a few days. Last season, we registered about a 15 percent increase in gate receipts and a big improvement in TV ratings. There were games that drew at least seven million TV viewers in mega Manila alone. We hope to surpass the numbers this season.”

Gregorio said his vision for the PBA is focused on two things – first, reaching out to Filipino fans and second, promoting Asian integration and business growth. “I want all PBA players, regardless of status, to go back to their home province and conduct half-day or whole-day clinics in barangays,” he said. “We’ll tie up with Molten and a TV maker to get the players to donate basketballs and TV sets to their barangays so we expand our fan base and viewership. Every PBA player is a star in his barangay. Fil-foreigners will do their clinics and reach-outs in Metro Manila. This will connect and reconnect the PBA to the grassroots. The second point involves bringing in Asian reinforcements, perhaps for the Governors Cup. This is a way for the PBA’s business to grow. With Asian reinforcements, we are able to tap Asian markets for the PBA’s teams.”

Gregorio said he intends to visit each PBA team owner and explain his “vision of progress.” The recent trip of the Korean Basketball League team LG Sakers to Manila was an eye-opener, he noted. “Did you notice the advertising that the Sakers put out?” continued Gregorio. “They called out the big Korean community. If there are 300,000 Koreans living in the country, that’s quite a market. Why not take advantage of this opportunity through the PBA? The popularity of basketball is on the rise, thanks to our performance at the FIBA Asia Championships last year and the recent FIBA World Cup in Spain. It’s our 40th anniversary and I think the time is right to set a direction for the future.”