The PBA Board of Governors is set to convene in August to determine whether or not Season 45 will resume as the league continues to deal with the crippling effects of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
And among the issues on the table is the fate of the D-League, which was part of the league’s operations that got suspended last March 11 when COVID-19 was starting to wreak havoc in the country.
“By August, dedesisyunan na rin namin ang D-League,” Commissioner Willie Marcial said in the PSA Forum powered by SMART and presented by San Miguel Beer, Go For Gold, Amelie Hotel, Braska Restaurant, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR).
Basketball and football teams have already been allowed to return to practice by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases, per the request of the PBA and the Philippine Football Federation.
In fact, PBA ball clubs are already gearing up for their return, which will begin tentatively on June 22.
However, only professional squads are allowed to return to training. Amateur, collegiate, and semi-pro leagues have yet to receive the green light from the Task Force.
“Bawal pa ang amateurs,” Marcial said.
A total of 12 teams have participated in the 2020 Aspirants Cup, with Marinerong Pilipino the only ball club in the field. The rest are school-based squads.
The Skippers, who first joined the developmental ranks in 2017, were leading the standings together with Builders Warehouse-UST and EcoOil-La Salle as they all carried 2-0 record before the suspension.
Reigning NCAA champions Wangs-Letran, APEX Fuel-San Sebastian, ADG Dong-Mapua, Diliman College, FamilyMart-Enderun, SeaOil-Far Eastern University, Technological Institute of the Philippines, AMA Senior High, and Karate Kid-Centro Escolar University complete the cast.
