The first-ever 3×3 basketball league in the Philippines is set for its first conference.
Chooks-to-Go unveiled its grand plan for its league, Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3×3, which will feature 12 city-based squads, Friday afternoon at Bar One in Crowne Plaza, Quezon City.
“We are very excited with this 3×3 league backed by Chooks-to-Go. Ito yung unang pagkakataon natin na magkaroon ng liga for 3×3,” said league commissioner Eric Altamirano. “We will have teams from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.”
MPBL club teams Manila Stars; Go for Gold-San Juan Knights; Bataan Risers; Bacoor Strikers; Valenzuela Classic; Marikina Shoemasters; and Bulacan Kuyas have signed on for this endeavor. Also committing are the Zark’s Burger-backed Quezon City; the Dondon Hontiveros-owned Cebu; and a team from Davao Occidental and Pasig.
Chooks-to-Go is doing this to help the country accumulate much-needed points to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
“Though the point system of FIBA is complicated, it all starts by having a league,” added Altamirano. “Then when we have a league, we can now join the World Tour, which comprises of forty events. That’s where all the points come from.”
The first conference of the tournament will have six legs, all played in SM Malls. All teams will play during the day in a round-robin format. Each leg will have a champion.
On the sixth legs, all the teams will be ranked based on their accumulated points, with the top four automatically seeded. The teams will figure in a knockout tournament, with the champion team picking up bragging rights and a cool PHP 1,000,000.
All games will be televised across all platforms of ESPN5.
“What we want in ESPN5 is to elevate 3×3 basketball by broadcasting it with international broadcast coverage. We won’t cover it just like any other barangay league, we will elevate it to the international stage,” said ESPN5 Vice President Lloyd Manaloto.
“This is in line with Chooks-to-Go’s mantra of giving the players the chance to showcase their skills.”
The pre-season games will be held at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City on January 14.
