PBA to tackle Gilas participation

MANILA, Philippines — A three-day, face-to-face planning session is scheduled by the PBA to involve the Board of Governors and management team at the pro league office in Libis with a full agenda, including Gilas’ participation in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT), on the table. The meeting is set on March 8-9-10 as PBA commissioner Willie Marcial said yesterday he expects a lot of issues to be taken up and resolved.

Among the items in the agenda are the budget for 2021, season calendar, 3x3, TV5’s presentation and Gilas. So far, there has been no discussion on the PBA’s involvement with Gilas in preparing for the reset FIBA Asia Cup third qualifying window in Clark and the OQT in Serbia. The PBA had earlier given the go-signal for players Kiefer Ravena, Justin Chua, Raul Soyud, Troy Rosario, RR Pogoy and CJ Perez to join the Gilas training at the Inspire bubble in Calamba but the camp broke up when the Clark tournament was postponed. If the Clark window is moved to early June and the OQT is set on June 29-July 4, they will be in conflict with the PBA season which opens on April 9.

The PBA has stated it will fully support SBP’s Gilas program so the planning session will determine possible adjustments in schedule and players to be included in the national pool for the coming competitions. Marcial said the 3x3 format will also be finalized during the meeting. Alaska PBA governor Dickie Bachmann, designated as 3x3 committee chairman by the board, will lead the discussion on the new feature.

Marcial said the plan is to stage three or four 3x3 tournaments this season, focusing on the competitions that earn FIBA world ranking points. All 12 PBA teams are signed up and there is interest from five other entities to join so it’s likely the 3x3 league will be composed of 18 squads. The first tournament may start on the same day as the PBA season or a little later, depending on IATF guidelines. The other tournaments may be held in between conferences. Each 3x3 team will list a six-man lineup. Players from a PBA team’s regular 15- man roster may be relegated to 3x3 but will not be allowed to rejoin 5x5 until after the 3x3 tournament. Eligibility will follow FIBA rules, meaning Fil-foreigners or even foreigners without Filipino blood holding Philippine passports are allowed to play even without Bureau of Immigration (BI) or Department of Justice (DOJ) papers. Only 17 of 31 Fil-foreign draft applicants have submitted BI and DOJ documents with Friday as the deadline.

“We are helping SBP prepare a pool of players for the 2024 Olympics so we’ll follow FIBA eligibility rules,” said Bachmann. Although the 3x3 league will allow Fil-foreign passport holders without BI or DOJ papers, Bachmann said it won’t mean eligibility to play in the PBA, stressing the “separate” nature of 3x3 and 5x5.