THE PBA clarified it is implementing the unrestricted free agency after the end of the 2021 season.
PBA commissioner Willie Marcial confirmed the development as the league will soon have true free agents during the offseason.
"After this season, free agent na sila," Marcial said on Tuesday.
Previously, players whose contracts have expired aren't totally free in signing with other teams as thee ballclubs maintain their rights unless it is relinquished through a release or a trade.
But under the new conditions, free agents now have the liberty to move elsewhere if they choose to.
The ruling only applies to players whose contracts have expired after their seventh season in the league.
In the very recent history of the league, the old ruling allowed teams such as Barangay Ginebra and TNT to keep their rights to players such as Greg Slaughter after the 2019 season and Bobby Ray Parks after last season even though they no longer have an existing contract with their ballclubs.
However, only players who were drafted beginning in the 2014 draft are covered by the said rule, which means those who came into the PBA before that time will still be under the old policy on free agents.
The change was made during the administration of former PBA commissioner Chito Salud and the late Purefoods team governor Ely Capacio, the ruling of which give players other options aside from their mother ballclubs once their contracts end.
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