PBA willing to field more teams in EASL

MANILA, Philippines – The PBA is open to having more teams competing in the East Asia Super League (EASL), commissioner Willie Marcial said Thursday.

“Why not?” Marcial said in a press conference, referring to the possibility of fielding more teams in the EASL. 

Currently, only two PBA teams are competing in the EASL — the TNT Tropang Giga and first-timers Meralco Bolts. 

Last season, the Barangay Ginebra Kings played saw action in the league. But this time around, they were replaced by Meralco.

For his part, EASL CEO Matt Beyer also welcomed the thought of having more teams in the league, which currently has eight.

Aside from TNT and Meralco, the Seoul SK Knights, Ryukyu Golden Kings, New Taipei Kings, Chiba Jets, Taipei Futon Braves and Anyang Jung Kwan Jang Red Boosters will also play in the home-and-away hoops competition.

TNT, which was defeated by the Chiba Jets on October 11, will face the Japanese team anew on November 1 at the Santa Rosa Sports Complex.

Meralco, meanwhile, will take on Ryukyu in their league debut on November 15 at the Okinawa Arena.

The Tropang Giga and Bolts welcomed the EASL games, saying these will help them prepare for the PBA season. 

Beyer, meanwhile, also said he wants to expand the league into other countries. 

“We will keep expanding. [We want to go into] mainland China, further expansion to Southeast Asia, and Oceania. We’re growing,” he told reporters. 

“We already have… with the geographies covered with a third of the world’s population, I think we will be happy when we get half of the world in EASL,” he added.