New teams for PBA?

"We’re in serious discussion with two groups at the moment," said Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) commissioner Noli Eala the other day. "We intend to finalize discussions with the two new groups by the end of the year."

Eala declined to identify the two groups but sources said one is a highly profitable company that has franchises all over the country and the other is a conglomerate with interests in real estate, communications and financial services.

Aside from the two groups, there is a third party interested in acquiring an existing franchise so that it inherits a nucleus of veteran players. The problem is no franchise is for sale at the moment so the third group may be left to continue playing in the Philippine Basketball League (PBL) until an opportunity opens up for a quick transition to the pros.

By the way, PBL commissioner Chino Trinidad yesterday assured the public the league will not sit quietly while a computer shop owner calls for tryouts to form a new team, claiming to be in line for a slot in the next PBL conference.

The shop owner was exposed for misrepresentation in this column a few days ago. Trinidad said the league is not entertaining any application for a new team and the shop owner’s invitation for tryouts to play in the PBL is a "fraud."

The PBL is set to hold a Board meeting of team owners on Aug. 10.

Tryouts purportedly for a new PBL squad were held at the Central College of the Philippines gym on Aurora Boulevard last Sunday and about 30 players showed up. Veteran coach Bong Go conducted the two-hour session, which was filmed by a TV crew for a reality show.

A second round of tryouts was scheduled today but after the expose, was cancelled.

Trinidad said he has nothing against anyone forming a team and conducting tryouts but players should be told what league they’re supposed to be joining. He said players shouldn’t be misled or fooled into thinking they’re trying out for a PBL team.

"Now, I heard the computer shop owner will move his tryouts to Batangas," said Trinidad. "He can do what he wants but players trying out for his team should be warned that it’s not to play in the PBL."

* * *

Tennis buff Randy Villanueva said he received a lot of positive feedback from friends all over the country about Boris Becker’s offer to play here, possibly in a match against John McEnroe.

Becker told The STAR in an interview during the recent National Basketball Association (NBA) Finals in Miami that he would like to play in Manila and could bring along McEnroe. Becker has never visited the country.

Now, the problem is finding the sponsor to bankroll the project. Ranked No. 1 in world tennis in 1991, the 6-3 Becker has won six Grand Slam events – the Australian Open in 1991 and 1996, Wimbledon in 1985, 1986 and 1989 and the US Open in 1989. He won the gold medal in men’s doubles with Michael Stich for Germany at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.

In 1985, Becker became the youngest-ever male and the first unseeded player to win the Wimbledon title. He was only 17. When Becker retired in 1999, he had amassed nearly $22 million in prize money and 49 singles crowns.

Lately, Becker’s love life has kept him in the headlines instead of his sporting activities. He divorced his wife of seven years Barbara Feltus, who is half-black, in 2001 and paid a hefty price for it – a $14.4 million payoff, their condo on Fisher Island and custody of their sons Noah and Elias. Becker has since been involved in affairs with rap star Sabrina Setlur, Russian model Anna Ermakova (with whom he has a daughter Anna – he coughed up $5 million to settle a paternity suit), computer expert Patrice Farameh (who has worked on projects with recording stars Bob Dylan and Oasis) and French ballet dancer Caroline Rocher.

Last year, it was reported that Becker had a new girlfriend, a 17-year-old Russian known only as Elena L.

Struck by a series of unsuccessful business ventures, Becker recently said he is selling his tennis rackets, trophies and mementoes to raise about $500,000 "for those who are close to him" even as his assets were estimated to be over $100 million.

Villanueva said Filipino Davis Cuppers Cecil Mamiit, Eric Taino and P. J. Tierro continue to campaign overseas in their quest for higher stakes.

Mamiit withdrew from his second round match against Israel’s Harel Levy because of the flu in the $100,000 Olum Brown Open in Vancouver a few days back. Mamiit won the first set, 7-6, but was down, 0-3, when he conceded.

In the same tournament, Taino lost in the last round of qualifying but sneaked into the main draw just the same after No. 2 seed Mark Philippoussis of Australia backed out. Taino went on to upset Germany’s Simon Stadler, 6-3, 7-6, in the first round.

Tierro has made giant strides in his own drive to get better. At the $10,000 Futures in Jakarta last week, he trounced Hong Kong’s Hiu Tung Yu, 6-4, 6-1, and Korea’s Seung Yoor Chung, 6-4, 6-4, to advance to the quarterfinals. Chung beat Tierro in straight sets in the tournament last year.

Tierro showed marked improvement in the quarters against back-to-back Futures champion Tekahiro Terachi of Japan. Last June, Terachi crushed Tierro, 6-, 6-1, in a Futures event in Thailand. But this time, Tierro pushed him to the limit before succumbing, 6-3, 4-6, 6-1.