PBA board not consulted by SBP about Asian Games withdrawal

PBA presscon re the Asiad is about to begin. Stay tuned. #WeArePBA pic.twitter.com/DjORSz8ChM

— PBA (@pbaconnect) July 27, 2018

The Philippine Basketball Association also aired its displeasure that the country will not be represented in the Asian Games but at the same time, reiterated that it maintains 100% support of Gilas Pilipinas despite what took place Thursday night.

Represented by seven members of its board and commissioner Willie Marcial in a press conference before Game 1 of the Commissioner’s Cup Finals on Friday night, the league expressed its disappointment that it wasn’t even informed of the pullout which the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas decided to do late Thursday night.

READ: SBP makes U-turn, withdraws from Asian Games

Marcial and Barangay Ginebra governor Alfrancis Chua said that the PBA simply cannot suspend its tournaments to accommodate the Asian Games campaign because the league would have to stop operations for close to two months to do that.

Chua said that the belief of fans that the San Miguel group is stingy in lending its players is far from the truth, pointing out the Christian Standhardinger case in the Fiba 3X3 where San Miguel’s prized rookie was injured.

“Sana naman maintindihan nila (fans), si Christian nga pinalaro namin sa 3X3, napilay. Ayun, hindi namin mapakinabangan,” said Chua. “I think it’s a matter of scheduling (the international tournaments). San Miguel and its teams are willing to lend (players).”

READ: Without Blatche, Clarkson for Gilas, SBP ‘thought best not to send’ for Asian Games

The board also stressed that, in earlier talks with the SBP, that the cage body on two occasions through coach Chot Reyes said that it wasn’t keen on sending PBA players to the Games because the SBP’s preference was for a sustained participation in the Fiba World Cup’s Qualifying windows.

Dickie Bachmann, the Alaska representative who was also present, said that it was painful that fans took to social media to blast the PBA when in fact “we have been very supportive of the national campaign all this time.”

READ: Philippines facing fines for SBP’s Asian Games pullout

Raymond Zorilla of Phoenix Petroleum said that it was painful that “the SBP came up with that decision. We all knew we were going (to the Games).” And that the SBP should “give us the courtesy of being informed, consulted, the way we were being informed and consulted during the formation of Gilas teams.”

“I found out of the decision this morning on Twitter,” Zorilla said.