PBA shortens schedule to give Gilas more time to prepare for Fiba Worlds

By: Celest R. Flores - 11 years ago

Gilas Pilipinas Team. Photo by Noy Morcoso lll/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Basketball Association on Thursday moved to shorten the 2013-2014 season to give the national men’s basketball team a longer build-up for the 2014 Fiba World Cup in Spain this August.

After national team head coach Chot Reyes presented his proposal to the PBA board, the league agreed to move the close of the season-ending Governors’ Cup from August 13 to as early as July 15.

“The board reiterated their full support to the Gilas program and they have very generously cut back the schedule by 1 month,” Reyes said in an interview after the meeting.

The team owners and governors agreed to reduce the length of the finals of both the second and third conferences from a best-of-seven series to a best-of-five.

The opening of the 2014-2015 PBA season has been also pushed back to October 19, which is aimed at allowing Gilas Pilipinas to compete in the Asian Games slated September.

The once-a-week practices for the national team will commence on the first Monday of March after the conclusion of the on-going PBA Philippine Cup.

Reyes also said that if he requires to tap additional players for the pool, the league would “take it to their respective owners and that they can be considered to be part of the pool for the Gilas team.”

The national team earned a ticket to the Fiba Worlds after a historic and emotional conquest in the 2013 Fiba Asia Championships held in Manila.