Adalem offers pro league fresh take on sundry issues

A VIABLE alternative.

That’s what Dr. Ernest Jay Adalem, big cage fan and organizer, is offering to the Philippine Basketball Association which is in the process of selecting a new commissioner.

The founding president of the National Athletic Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities and board member of the Southeast Asian Basketball Association, Adalem is among the four remaining candidates for the top PBA job Chito Salud is giving up after the ongoing Commissioner’s Cup.

“I would be an outsider looking in—I offer a fresh take on everything,” said Adalem, who is also treasurer and chair of finance of Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas headed by tycoon Manny V. Pangilinan.

Adalem has been involved in basketball management for years. He served as finance chief of the Fiba Asia Championship in 2013.

Adalem also served as 2014 Asian Games Task Force head of  the Philippine Olympic Committee, handling team sports including basketball. He was also the 2011 SEA Games cluster leader for 12 sports.

Off-hand, Adalem said he would like to address the league’s pressing concerns on officiating, adding he would look for other sources of income for referees like stints in the UAAP and the NCAA.

“The more games they call, the more efficient they become,” Adalem said.

The other candidates are PBA operations chief Rickie Santos, former PBL commissioner Chito Narvasa and former PBA star Vince Hizon.