MANILA, Philippines — Sold-out games. Records at the gate. Competitive balance. And possibly, expansion teams.
PBA Commissioner Chito Salud has seen all these unfold before his eyes. And he doesn’t see the league slowing down any time soon as it approaches its 40th year.
The league will celebrate its 39th anniversary today, and Salud can’t help but look back at what has been a succesful prelude to the celebration: The banner year that was 2013.
From Gilas Pilipinas’ silver medal finish in the Fiba Asia Championship to another monumental Philippine Cup that set a new all-time high game attendance of 24,883 in the Game 7 of Ginebra and San Mig Coffee, Salud is optimistic on how much the league can grow for the future.
Right direction
“We’re in the right direction,” he said. “We’re able to meet the expectations of the fans, meaning they want exciting games and we were able to give them that.”
“The players are responding by playing their best at all times. They’re behaving on and off the court, showing the acceptance of the responsibility of being role models. Our tournament formats are successful in that we have drastically cut down non-bearing games, which bore the fans and which we also do not like. At the same time, it keeps the players on their toes and fit for the game.”
“So all of this combined, with the support of our Board of Governors and our team owners, we’re able to introduce all these innovations simply to make the PBA more responsive to the clamor of the fans,” he said.
The affable lawyer also credited the league’s resurgence to the young guns entering the league, as he said, “We’re taking steps in the right direction.”
“The entry of new and fresh blood—that means that the game will be more exciting because our veterans will be challenged. They will be asked to bring their game to the next level because of the rookies who will continually try to prove themselves,” Salud said.
Lifeblood
“On the other hand, the rookies are always the lifeblood of the league, the future of the league. Without them, there will be no new challenges and new flavor. In the long run, because of their talent and their skills, and of course, their basketball IQ, they are able to adjust and help make the PBA more exciting.”
“And its evident right now that they’re leading the league in terms of statistics, in terms of fan base, and in terms of popularity. So I think they are in a good spot right now having these young players. Big men leading the way in terms of performing, and in terms of attracting the fans for the league,” he said, mentioning guys like June Mar Fajardo, Greg Slaughter, and Japeth Aguilar to just some of the new bigs that are bringing a new dimension in the style of play in the PBA.
Long process
Though some note that the entry of fresh faces in the league might be signaling a paradigm shift when it comes to the superstars, Salud was still quick to note that the “changing of the guard is a long process.”
“You still have James Yap out there. You still have Mark Caguioa out there. You still have Jimmy Alapag, Jayson Castro, and Ranidel de Ocampo out there. That will be a long process before we can finally say that these young turks have finally taken over the league,” he said.
“The new players challenge our veterans and compel them to elevate their games. What you see here is not just the coming of a new breed of players, but also veterans who are elevating their play to be able to stay on top of the game.”
With already a solid foundation already laid for the next years to come, Salud said that the PBA will still be constantly on the lookout to improve the brand of basketball in the league, both for the sport and the fans.
“Our team owners have one instruction from me: make the games more exciting and make the league more responsive to the desires of the fans. And everything that we do here emanates from that instructions to the team owners.
Lets just hope that our players continue to respond to their obligations to play their best at all times,” he said.
“I believe, all of that will contribute to another successful 2014 season and hopefully, in the future.”