Expansion for PBA?

The entry of guest team Bay Area Dragons will increase the cast of contenders for the PBA Commissioner’s Cup championship to 13 and could signal the start of discussions on a possible league expansion in the future. Blackwater Bossing team owner Dioceldo Sy said yesterday the construction of two top-class stadiums in Cebu City and Davao City tickled his imagination into conjuring visions of Visayan and Mindanao teams playing in the PBA.

The 16,000-seat, five-level SM Seaside City Arena is expected to be completed in 2025, conforming to the lofty standards of the Mall of Asia Arena. It will be located in the prime South Road Properties beside the SM Seaside Complex. In Davao City, the 75,000-seat King of Jesus Christ King Dome is planned to open this year with a massive footprint equivalent to over 100 NBA basketball courts. Both venues are perfect for PBA games.

“If we bring in two teams from the Visayas and two more from Mindanao to expand the PBA to 16 franchises, it will create a huge interest and change the paradigm of our league,” said Sy. “We could develop a home-and-away format and we will come closer to our objective of parity. We could do an expansion draft with a protect-10 provision for the existing 12 teams. I will explore this idea with the PBA Board of Governors. There will be two good venues in Cebu and Davao and it’s worth looking at and thinking about. We want to bring the PBA to more areas.”

Sy is traveling to Tokyo to join the PBA Board and management on a trip late this coming week. Sy’s brother Silliman represents Blackwater in the PBA Board but he hopes to explain the concept himself during the planning meeting. A maverick visionary, Sy likes to think out of the box and come up with revolutionary, if not wild, ideas that often lead to pathways for the future.

Although Sy has not sounded out possible investors for the expansion teams, he said there are businessmen who may be interested. “Top of mind would include Joe Soberano, CEO of Cebu Landmasters and the Lhuillier, Jalosjos, Bautista, Lagdameo and Floirendo families,” he said. “They’re sports-minded and passionate about sports. With the Seaside Arena and King Dome, I’m sure business groups will consider owning PBA teams to play in the new stadiums.”

Expansion, however, isn’t an easy proposition. Aside from the franchise fee of P100 million and a multi-year commitment to stay in the PBA, a team owner needs an annual operating budget of at least P100 million. Adding four more franchises will mean diluting the media mileage of the 12 existing teams and making a major adjustment in schedules. With more international games filling up the calendar, it will be a challenge for the PBA to fit four more teams in a packed three-conference format for a season. Three conferences are preferred than two because it will mean one more Finals to play. Like in the NBA, the Finals are the biggest crowd drawer in a season. It’s also possible for any of the 12 current PBA teams to play games at the Seaside Arena and King Dome without adding teams from the Visayas and Mindanao. Still, Sy’s idea is surely something to consider.