PBA board focuses on actual competition

MANILA, Philippines — With training ongoing and scrimmages awaiting IATF clearance, the PBA is now preparing to lay down the plan of action for its eyed tournament resumption.

PBA commissioner Willie Marcial said the board of governors will convene on Friday to deliberate on how the pro league intends to proceed with the Philippine Cup restart.

“The board will discuss what kind of bubble we’ll have, whether we will follow the NBA model or the one used by the Bundesliga,” Marcial said.

The NBA placed all the teams in a single place, Disney World, to completely isolate the participants.

The Bundesliga, the German top-flight football league, used a method where players must live in “near-quarantine conditions” at home and observe a home-vehicle-venue routine.

Marcial has been tasked by PBA chairman Ricky Vargas to study several options and present them to the board.

Prospective hubs include the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Inspire Sports Academy in Laguna, Coca Cola Arena in Dubai, as well as facilities in Batangas, Subic, Clark and El Nido, Palawan.

“There are 16 or 17 hotels that have given us proposals; they want to help sports return and we want to help boost tourism as well with our resumption,” said Marcial.