FILE – NLEX guard Kiefer Ravena. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines — The PBA has pulled the plug on Kiefer Ravena’s stint in the Japanese B.League.
In a hastily called press conference on Saturday, league chair Ricky Vargas said the PBA Board of Governors has come to an agreement to disallow Ravena from playing with the Shiga Lakestars in the B.League.
“The board has decided that Kiefer has to honor his contract with NLEX and PBA,” said Vargas, who also stressed the board’s decision is final.
“It was a discussion. It was not a one minute decision and the board and all its wisdom, we looked at all the possible scenarios and all the risks of these scenarios and came up with the decision,” he said.
Ravena is still under a three-year Uniform Player’s Contract (UPC) with NLEX he signed last September which prevents him from playing in other leagues.
On Wednesday, Shiga announced it has signed Ravena for the 2021-22 B.League season.
Ravena also released a statement Wednesday night with regard to his B.League campaign.
The board will also send a letter to the B.League and Shiga to inform them about Ravena’s existing contract, according to Vargas.
PBA commissioner Willie Marcial said he will personally speak with Ravena after the press conference with regard to the board’s decision.