Welcoming both worlds

Yesterday marked a milestone in the basketball histories of the PBA and East Asia Super League (EASL) as the two organizations formally welcomed each other to their turfs. EASL will participate in the next PBA Governors’ Cup late this year through its only franchise team Bay Area Dragons while the PBA will join the EASL in its inaugural season opening this October. The partnership is a marriage of two worlds and amplifies the PBA’s vision of showcasing the Filipino game beyond national borders.

PBA commissioner Willie Marcial said two PBA squads will compete in the eight-team EASL. The process of selection is a lottery involving the league’s top four clubs. Each EASL team is guaranteed an appearance fee of $20,000 per game and a bonus of another $20,000 for every win. The ultimate prize for the champion is $1 million. EASL’s schedule will be climaxed by a Final Four and a championship game plus a battle for third in March next year. Where the playoff s will be held is still up in the air but EASL CEO Matt Beyer said a Manila staging isn’t a remote possibility.

How to integrate the PBA and EASL schedules is a doable challenge. The Dragons and two PBA teams will play their EASL home games in Manila. Each EASL team plays three home and three away contests in the regular season so there will be nine EASL games in Manila. The Dragons will fly in no later than Aug. 1 and the plan is to use Manila as base for 243 days. EASL CFO Henry Kerins said negotiations are underway for the team to be billeted in a top hotel during its Manila stay. That would mean allocating 15 rooms over eight months.

Beyer said the Dragons will be available to be Gilas’ sparring partner so that’s another positive in the marriage. While the Dragons will employ two non-Asian imports and one Asian reinforcement for the EASL, they’ll abide by the PBA eligibility rules for the Governors’ Cup. Beyer said the lineup will be fortified by giants from Mainland China, Hong Kong and Taipei, leaving guard spots for imports. It’s the reverse in the PBA where big imports are a premium because of the depth in talent of Filipino guards. Beyer didn’t disclose who the Dragons coach will be but dropped hints on his identity, describing him as a “world-famous coach with decades of championship-winning history in the world’s top leagues.”

Marcial said the Dragons will be eligible to compete for the Governors’ Cup title even as a guest team. A guest team will compete in the PBA for the first time in nearly 20 years and development is timely, considering the potential of expanding the league’s market on a regional scale. Two guest teams previously won PBA titles, Nicholas Stoodley in 1980 and Northern Consolidated in 1985. The Dragons were initially named the Phoenixes but the change was made to avoid confusion with the PBA club Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters.