STARHORSE Shipping, a maritime company whose ships carry passengers and cargoes to several Visayan provinces, has closed a deal to take over the franchise of Terrafirma in the PBA, ending that team's 11 years of participation in Asia's pioneering professional basketball league.
The official sale has not been announced, as the deal, reportedly worth P100 million, will have to be approved by two-thirds vote of the members of the PBA board, which is eight of 12.
Approval is almost certain, however, as the new team does not compete with any of the 11 other members of the PBA which is a requisite for companies joining the league.
The sale of Terrafirma, a team that often languished at the bottom of the standings and whose best performance has been two quarterfinals appearances, has been brewing for the past several months.
Representatives of Starhorse had previously met with PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial to inform him about their intention to buy Terrafirma's franchise and the deal was finalized a few days ago.
READ: New PBA team on the way? MPBL's Starhorse looking to join Asia's oldest pro league
Once approved by the PBA board, Starhorse will take over the team known currently as the Dyip lock, stock and barrel - which means the new owners will absorb all the players and coaches during the transfer.
Terrafirma, however, will finish the season and compete in the third conference next month, while Starhorse will open its season when the league celebrates its 50th anniversary in October.
The Dyip was first known as KIA when it was approved as one of two expansion franchises along with Blackwater back in 2014, the same year NLEX brought the Air21 team.
It entered the PBA in a manner that defied convention. It was bannered by boxing icon Manny Pacquiao who served as playing coach from 2014-2016 when the team was known as KIA Picanto.
Terrafirma will be the second PBA team sold in three years after Converge acquired the Alaska franchise in 2022.
Building blocks for Starhorse
Although Terrafirma recently traded major pieces responsible for leading the team to the playoffs for just the second time in last year's All-Filipino campaign, the franchise still has several key players to build around for Starhorse.
Young guns such as Mark Nonoy, Kemark Carino, Louie Sangalang, Paolo Hernandez, Brent Paraiso, Didat Hanapi, and Aljun Melecio are currently on the Dyip's roster, while veterans Terrence Romeo, Stanley Pringle, Kevin Ferrer, and Aldrech Ramos can still be relied upon.
The team also still owns the playing rights to big man Christian Standhardinger, should the 6-foot-8 Fil-German decide to come out of retirement.
The team began to carry the Terrafirma brand in 2020 when Columbian Autocar Corporation transferred its franchise to affiliate company Terra Firma Realty Development Corporation.
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