Dress up or pay up

There’s not single punch thrown, a kick dealt or a fracas erupting that would disrupt a game in the two-week-old 2003 Philippine Basketball Association season.

And yet, the PBA Players Trust Fund cash register has kept on ringing with a number of players getting fined for not following dress code imposed by PBA commissioner Noli Eala before the start of the season.

Thirty-eight players, including the newly reinstated Asi Taulava and Dorian Peña, have been assessed a total of P55,000 in fines for violating the rules on dress code during the games.

The Commissioner’s Office has earlier ruled that players must have their jerseys tucked in while inside the court even during the round robin, their shorts must not be beyond the middle of the knee and their socks must be at least an inch above their playing shoes.

"This is part of the memorandum given the players before the start of the season regarding game conduct. What we want is the PBA setting the standard on how the players should be properly dressed," said PBA technical chief Perry Martinez.

"We’re sending the message that if you want to be in the PBA, you should act like a true professional even in wearing the uniform. Yung mga hindi maayos ang uniform sa inter-barangay o inter-color lang iyon," Martinez added.

Aside from Taulava and Peña, other players who have been fined for violating the dress code are Alaska’s Rob Duat, Don Camaso, Mike Cortez, Stephen Padilla, Migs Noble, Ali Peek, Brandon Cablay and Don Allado, Shell’s Chris Calaguio, Talk N Text’s Harvey Carey, Jimmy Alapag, Felix Belano, Patrick Fran, Norman Gonzales and Kahi Villa, Purefoods’ Kerby Raymundo, Billy Mamaril and Marc Victoria, Ginebra’s Rob Johnson, Elmer Lago, Bal David, Alex Crisano, Sta. Lucia’s Marlou Aquino, Jomar Tierra and Jason Webb, San Miguel’s Nic Belasco, Olsen Racela, Arnold Gamboa and Joey Mente, Red Bull’s Willie Miller, Enrico Villanueva, Nelson Asaytono, Homer Se and Lordy Tugade and Coca-Cola’s Poch Juinio and Rob Wainwright.

Only FedEx is the team with no players fined in violation of the new rule.

Reavies is the player who has amassed the most fine with P7,000, committing three violations during the Coca-Cola-Shell tiff on March 5 plus two more during their next game against the Purefoods Hotdogs in Iloilo City last Saturday.

First offense is worth P1,000 plus an additional P1,000 for every succeeding violation.

Reavies was booked for extra long shorts and not tucking his shirt in during the round robin and while reporting in the substitution box in their game against Shell. The Fil-Am slotman again came wearing the same shorts and not having his shirt tucked in at the substitution box in their game against the Hotdogs.

Other players fined in two different games were Allado, Camaso, Gamboa and Belasco.

Meanwhile, NBN-4 and IBC-13 may start covering the PBA games on a parallel basis starting Sunday.

IBC-13, with a separate crew and TV panel, had its test-coverage last Sunday. The PBA board of governors was watching the test-broadcast in the PBA office at presstime.

At the resumption of action today at the Philsports Arena, Red Bull is fancied to bounce back from a loss the last time out as it takes on a Sta. Lucia team which is to play minus injured ace scorer Kenneth Duremdes.

Duremdes suffered a second-degree sprained left ankle as the Realtors tripped the FedEx Express, 81-71, last Friday.

Purefoods and FedEx clash in the other game with the Hotdogs looking for a second win in four starts while the Express again seek to gain their first win in the tourney. FedEx is the only remaining team without a single win.