PBA to implements rule changes for 45th season

In an effort to speed up the game and align some of its rules with Fiba standards, the PBA is implementing changes when the league opens its 45th season this March.

The revisions, approved by the PBA and a four-man competition committee, covers rules on substitutions, shotclock resetting, and fines and penalties for flagrant and technical fouls, according to the PBA website.

The goal in mind is to make the action “more exciting,” according to PBA deputy commissioner Eric Castro.

Castro also said that the tweaks on fines and penalties “should deter on-court confrontations and unsportsmanlike conduct.”

Part of this season’s competition commission are coaches Leo Austria of San Miguel, Caloy Garcia of Rain or Shine, Nash Racela of Blackwater and Louie Alas of Phoenix.

The league said it will make rounds in team practices and talk to team officials and players to explain the new rules.

“We will visit all team practices to ensure that players and team officials get the new rules right,” Castro said.