The Philippines is one of 17 national teams that will compete in the FIBA Esports Open.
The inaugural series of exhibition e-basketball games will take place from June 19 to 21, 2020.
E-Gilas Pilipinas will face teams from Argentina, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Cyprus, Indonesia, Italy, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, New Zealand, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Switzerland and Ukraine in the event that will be produced from the brand-new FIBA Esports Studio located in Riga, Latvia, with a daily four-hour show featuring up to six games.
Each game will be livestreamed on FIBA’s Facebook, Twitch and YouTube channels with live commentary in English.
“FIBA is extremely proud and excited to start its esports journey with the FIBA Esports Open 2020, a pilot project of exhibition games between national teams in collaboration with NBA 2K,” said Frank Leenders, FIBA Media and Marketing Services Director General.
“The esports initiative was identified by the FIBA Central Board as important and consistent with the strategic objective to enlarge the FIBA Family. In these challenging times, we feel encouraged by the enthusiasm of some of our National Federations who are already active in this space and have been our charter partners during the last few months.”
Each team will consist of seven players, five on the court, and two reserves. Games will be played remotely on NBA 2K using the Pro-AM mode and allowing full customization of player avatars, uniforms, and arena designs.
Esports has been one of the sports that has been thriving during the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
“NBA 2K is honored to partner with FIBA in creating the FIBA Esports Open 2020,” stated Jason Argent, Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations at 2K.
“Through these matches, we’re excited to be able to celebrate the global appeal of basketball.”
