PBA: ‘Home’ games eyed for guest Bay Area Dragons

FILE – PBA commissioner Willie Marcial.

The Bay Area Dragons had to face tough crowds during their stint here last year.

For its second guest appearance in the PBA, the Hong Kong-based squad could finally have a handful of “home games.”

PBA commissioner Willie Marcial said the league is looking to play three games in Hong Kong during the Commissioner’s Cup, which is scheduled to open on Oct. 15.

“We will have three games in Hong Kong, but we are uncertain of the other teams that will play there because we are still talking with Matt Beyer (Bay Area Dragons manager),” Marcial said during an appearance at the Philippine Sportswriters’ Association Forum on Tuesday.

“But we’re 80 percent close to sealing the deal,” added Marcial.

Bay Area, which finished second in the Commissioner’s Cup behind Barangay Ginebra, is expected to spice up the return of the league, which is taking an extended break to give way to the national team’s preparations and participation in two major tournaments—the Fiba World Cup and the Asian Games.

Once the league kicks off its latest season, though, the calendar will be packed with two conferences to be played in a six-month period.

The Rookie Draft gets going Sept. 17, almost a month before the season opens at Smart Araneta Coliseum on Oct. 15.

“Once the Commissioner’s Cup ends, there will be just seven to 10 days before we start the Philippine Cup,” Marcial said in the session presented by San Miguel Corporation, Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, MILO and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation.

The Commissioner’s Cup will have imports with a height ceiling of 6-foot-9.

The league is also looking to host out-of-town matches, following successful games held during the preseason On Tour, which featured games in Quezon, Bulacan, Batangas and Negros.

PBA will also hold its All-Star game in Bacolod.