MANILA, 2 January 2004 — This new year brings new life and new hopes for the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The league will introduce a transition tournament which will be called the Fiesta Conference, hoping that the name itself could open a new era in Philippine basketball.
“This is going to be a celebration of sorts. More than just a transition tournament, this is going to be a red-carpet conference that will usher in a new era in the league,” said PBA Commissioner Noli Eala.
“When the term transition conference cropped up, a lot of people felt that this was something that was merely going to be a filler while we wait for the new season to begin. This Fiesta Conference will shatter that perception,” he said.
Eala, who took over the commissionership from Jun Bernardino, is brimming with confidence that the league’s new format would generate interest among the fans, saying: “This is really going to an exciting prelude to the new season.”
The new PBA season, which will straddle two years like the National Basketball Association, begins October next year.
“We already have received indications that terms are starting to beef up their rosters in anticipation for the Fiesta Conference. So we are assured of quality games when the conference formally opens in February,” he said.
Eala said the league want to spur a celebration of sorts to usher in a new era in the league.
“When the term transition conference cropped up, a lot of people felt that this was something that was merely going to be a filler while we wait for the new season to begin. This Fiesta Conference will shatter that perception,” he said.
Definitely, the format alone makes the tournament doubly exciting.
The teams will go through a double-round elimination stage with the top two teams at the end of the 18-game-per-squad assignment advancing outright, but only to the quarterfinals.
The remaining team will go through a elimination knockout phase known as the sudden-death eliminations.
Team No. 3 faces team No. 10, team No. 4 faces team No. 9, team No. 5 faces team No. 8 and team No. 6 faces team No. 7. Billclubs will not be only scrambling for the top outright seats, they will also shoot or seeds three and four because both will have a twice-to-beat edge in the knockout elimination phase.
“This will push teams to really go for a good record. If you don’t get to the top 4, you have no incentive. If you are No. 5 and below, it’s one loss and you’re out in the sudden-death eliminations,” Eala said.
It’s a no-blink situation in the eliminations. And it gets even tougher in the quarterfinals. The surviving six teams will be grouped into two separate divisions of three teams each. One foreign team will be added to each group to spice up the competition, making the Fiesta Conference a mix of the All-Filipino and the Invitationals.
“We will go to extreme measures to make sure that the foreign teams we will invite won’t be like the ones that came before. We will make sure that the foreign teams will really give our local squads a tough challenge,” Eala vowed. The teams play a single round quarterfinal phase with the top 2 teams advancing to the semifinals, which will be a best-of-three, crossover affair. The surviving teams will square off in a best-of-five championship series for the first-ever Fiesta Cup.
“We will go to extreme measures to make sure that the foreign teams we will invite won’t be like the ones that came before. We will make sure that the foreign teams will really give our local squads a tough challenge,” said Eala.
At this early, perennial All-African champion Angola and Asian powers South Korea and Lebanon are the top preferences of the PBA to take part with the regular ballclubs in the Fiesta Cup.
Eala said they have also sent letters of invitation to Japan and the National Basketball League in Australia.
“If Korea, Angola and Lebanon say yes, it’s okay because the PBA really prefers these squads,” said Eala.
“Unfortunately, we didn’t invite the Chinese national team because we know they’re not complete right now with Yao Ming and Bateer Menk playing in the NBA. They might bring somebody who wouldn’t be attractive,” Eala explained.
“We will make sure the teams that will come here will make a serious run for the Fiesta Cup,” said Eala.
The PBA Fiesta Cup will mark the return of towering imports in the league.
“We’re tapping 6-foot-8 imports because the PBA is really trying to bring in real good foreign teams. With a tall import, we give everyone equal footing with the guest squads,” Eala said.
If they get club teams instead of national squads, Eala said these teams would be allowed to play with their own imported players. Club teams which would be attractive to the PBA are those from the Australian pro league. “But what we want from the NBL is its champion team,” said Eala.
