Too early to judge Asian imports’ impact

IT WILL be hard to determine this early how the presence of Asian imports would impact on  the team they’re  playing for as well as the league itself.

This is what newly appointed PBA commissioner Chito Narvasa told the Inquirer, a couple of weeks before he was voted into office.

A quick glance at the current team standings of the ongoing PBA Governors’ Cup should confirm Narvasa’s observation.

There are three teams with Asian imports in the top six of the rankings—Globalport, Meralco and KIA, who won over NLEX by three points last Monday—and just as much in the lower six—Talk ‘N Text, Ginebra and NLEX.

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“Definitely the Asian imports are an added attraction to the PBA, especially if they’re good and come from exotic countries like the batch we have now. They’re especially valuable to new and weaker teams with a local bench that’s not too deep,” said my favorite deputy coach in the pro cage league.

“Look at KIA. Playing coach Manny Pacquiao undoubtedly has a keen eye for imports, both American and Asian, and the pair he has is the main reason why KIA has been winning.

KIA’s Jet Chang comes from Chinese Taipei.

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Globalport’s Mikee Romero, for one, is happy that he has availed of the option to hire a 6-foot-3 Asian import.

The Batang Pier currently enjoy a 3-1 record, with a big help coming from Mikee’s Asian import who comes from Palestine.

“The Asian imports greatly help the team cover up their weak position,” said Mikee whose former Harbour Centre team was a pioneer in the Asean Basketball League.

“But the real value in what PBA chair Pato Gregorio has initiated is that it has opened the league to a different set of fans, even if they are not Filipinos. Suddenly PBA teams would have Palestinians, Jordanians, Syrians, Japanese, etc. cheering for them. This marketing strategy is a stroke of genius,” Mikee said.

According to Pato, the monthly $10,000 being paid the Asian imports is worth it. “They’re all good,” the chair said. But if you ask my favorite deputy coach,  Meralco’s Seiya Ando of Japan and TNT’s Sam Daghles from Jordan are the best for him.