SEPTEMBER is the target date for the resumption of the ASEAN Basketball League as the regional competition looks to start afresh after a three-year hiatus.
ABL news
ABL chief executive officer Connor Nguyen said in an interview with The Straits Times that the new management is hopeful to reinvigorate the basketball scene in the region as it continues to cope with the global COVID-19 pandemic.
"Due to the pandemic, it has been a very challenging time to organize sports competitions for everyone, but especially for an international league such as the ABL where competition typically entails cross-border travel," he said.
The home-and-away games have been a big part of the ABL structure, but Nguyen said that if the same format won't be observed due to the current travel restrictions within the country, the league won't shy away from holding it in a bubble city.
"Should the home-and-away format not yet be feasible for the 2022 season, ABL may pivot to a centralized competition format where all teams and games are played in one city and location, or alternatively organising a series of tournaments hosted by several countries as part of a competition circuit," he said.
San Miguel Alab Pilipinas is the last Philippine representative to the ABL, ruling the tourney in the 2018 season and becoming the third Filipino team to lift the trophy after the Philippine Patriots and the San Miguel Beermen.
Davao Pilipinas, composed of the core of the Davao Occidental Tigers who competed in the Maharlika Pilipinas Baskeball League and Pilipinas Super League, has signified its intention to carry the country's flag in the ABL's resumption.
For now, the regional league will try to kickstart its season with the ABL 3x3 International Champions Cup from April 16 to 17 in Bali, Indonesia.
Platinum Karaoke and Zamboanga Valientes will be the Philippine representatives in the men's division as they take on the Indonesia Patriots-A and B, Vietnam Red & Gold, Harimau Malaya of Malaysia, and Khmer Stars of Cambodia, as well as club teams Singapore Slingers, Saigon Heat, Bali United, Louvre Indonesia, Shoot It Dragons, SniperX, and Indian side Ahmedabad 3BL.
WNBL 3x3 champion Uratex Dream will also carry the flag in the women's division as it plays against Team Lions of Singapore, Vietnam Red & Gold, Harimau Malaya of Malaysia, Jumpshot, Louvre Indonesia, Indonesia Elite, and Delhi 3BL.
"The ABL 3x3 Cup is not intended to be a one-off competition as ABL plans to extend our platform from our current 5v5 league into more 3x3 competitions in the future," said Nguyen.
Aside from the halfcourt game, the ABL is also planning to stage a men's 5-on-5 friendly tournament on April 19 to 24, still in Bali as an early workout for teams competing in the 31st Southeast Asian Games in Hanoi, Vietnam.
Those, however, will still depend on the current travel restrictions among the participating nations.
"The calendar and competition format is subject to change should border restrictions in this region not be sufficiently relaxed to make international travel practical," said Nguyen.
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