Saturday, 10 April 2021

In Defense of the MPBL: Why It Need Not Amend Its Rules Limiting The Number of Ex-pros

 MPBL x NBL x VisMin Supercup

There is currently a lot of noise on news sites and on social media involving the memorandum recently released by the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) last April 01, 2021. The memorandum was sent by the MPBL to remind team owners and players that those who will play in professional leagues shall be tagged as ex-pros and will therefore be subjected to the rules limiting ex-pros on each team. 

While it merely reiterated an existing rule by the MPBL, the memorandum was not well received by the management of VisMin Supercup including some teams from the MPBL as they felt that they were being singled out. For the uninitiated, the MPBL had a rule that limits the number of ex-pros in a single team to seven (7) while only five (5) can play in a game. 

It must be noted that the the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) was the only professional basketball league in the Philippines when such rule was instituted by the MPBL. Meanwhile, other players turned professional in other countries when they became imports in foreign leagues such as the Thailand Basketball League and the ASEAN Basketball League (ABL).

It was presumably the intention of MPBL to limit ex-PBA and ex-ABL players from invading the MPBL since these ex-pros are more skilled compared to their amateur peers. The limit was also instituted to to give amateur players the much needed playing time to hone their game.

Recently, two professional leagues were launched in the Philippines. First is the National Basketball League (NBL) which was originally organized as an amateur tournament but it eventually applied to be a professional one. The second one is the VisMin Supercup, a professional league based in the Visayas and Mindanao. Although officially recognized as professional leagues, the talent quality in the these fledgling leagues is arguably lower as compared to the MPBL which maintained its status as an amateur league.

Should the MPBL amend its by-laws to provide exceptions to ex-pros who only played in the NBL and VisMin since they are less skillful, if not equally talented with their MPBL counterparts? We don't think so.

What is the effect of MPBL's limit on ex-pros?

When you read comments posted by basketball fans on social media, you will realize that a lot of them are misinformed, if not plainly ignorant. Many of them are under the impression that the MPBL will ban the players who will play in the Vismin Supercup or the NBL, and such ban will deprive the players of their livelihood specially now when we are still suffering from the Covid-19 pandemic.

They are, however, mistaken. The players who will participate in the NBL or the newly inaugurated VisMin Supercup will not be prohibited outright from returning into the MPBL. They can still play in the MPBL, although they will be considered as ex-pros and will therefore be subjected to the roster limit of seven (7) ex-professional players.

The roster limit of only (7) players, nonetheless, is an issue for teams that brought their core players into the VisMin Supercup. There are currently two MPBL teams who are fielding the core of their MPBL roster in the Vismin Cup. 

First is the Basilan Steel who is carrying the moniker Peace Riders. The Peace Riders will be bannered by the Basilan Steel's core players including Hesed Gabo, Jonathan Uyloan, Jay Collado, Bobby Balucanag, Darwin Lunor, Junjie Hallare, and Anthony Bringas. Basilan beefed up its lineup with players from other MPBL teams such as Chris Bitoon who recently became a PBA free agent, Juneric Baloria of Makati Supercrunch, Michael Juico of Pampanga Giant Lanterns, Michael Mabulac of Bacoor Strikers, Stephen Siruma and Shaq Taganas of Bulacan Kuyas.

Meanwhile, the nucleus of Valenzuela City's MPBL team will also take their act in the VisMin cup under the name MJAS Zenith Talisay. Paolo Hubalde, Jaymar Gimpayan, Mel Mabigat and Val Acuña will lead the team and they will be reinforced by Patrick Cabahug and Kevin Villafranca of the Cebu City Sharks, Dave Moralde of Muntinlupa Cagers, Jan Jamon of Pasay Voyagers, and Lester Alvarez of Batangas City Athletics.

All of the amateur players of Basilan and Valenzuela City listed above will now become professional players by virtue of their participation in the Vismin Cup. It will therefore be an issue for Basilan and Valenzuela since they can only bring seven (7) of their VisMin cup players into the MPBL. This means they will be forced to let go of some of their players and recruit new ones.

Will some VisMin Supercup players be left unsigned by any MPBL should it return for a new season? Possibly yes. Note that there are 32 teams in the MPBL. With seven (7) ex-pro players allowed in each team, there will be 224 total slots for ex-pros in the MPBL.

The ex-PBA players will definitely be prioritized by teams since they are the best talents outside of the PBA. The remaining slots will be contested by ex-pros from other professional leagues such as the ABL, NBL, and VisMin Super Cup. Obviously, the little-known players who became professional players in the NBL and VisMin Super Cup which are perhaps lower tier leagues compared to the MPBL may have a problem fighting for slots against ex-pros from the PBA and ABL.

Players who have lackluster credentials will now think twice before joining the VisMin Cup and the NBL since they cannot compete for slots in the MPBL against ex-PBA and ex-ABL players. The decision is now up to them. As they always say, you cannot have your cake and eat it too.

The MPBL is a grassroots basketball program.

First and foremost, the MPBL was established mainly to be an avenue for amateur players from different cities and provinces to display their skills before a national audience. It cannot be denied that the Philippines is blessed with thousands of young basketball players and the MPBL hopes to unearth these hidden talents.

Before the MPBL, the path widely taken by young hoopers into the PBA is through the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and Universities Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP). The problem though is that only few players are given the opportunity to shine given the limited teams participating in these leagues. It also does not help that the games of collegiate leagues in other parts of the country are not televised.

The seeming gap or lack of opportunity to be scouted for unheralded players is the problem which the MPBL seeks to address. With the MPBL being shown on national television, the MPBL provides a channel for the young basketball talents to show off what they got in the hope of getting noticed by PBA, NCAA, and UAAP scouts. In this aspect, the MPBL is playing a key role in the development of amateur talents.

Take for instance the cases of Mike Ayonayon and Aris Dionisio. These players were barely noticed when they were playing in uncelebrated collegiate leagues. Their draft stock, nevertheless, increased when they dominated in the MPBL, and both were drafted in the first round of the PBA draft.

As a training ground for budding amateur hoopers, the MPBL set a rule that each team should recruit at least three (3) players who are resident of the city which the team is representing. This will give a chance to local players to play and gain experience in a competitive league.

Aside from the rule on minimum homegrown players, the MPBL also added a rule that only seven (7) ex-pros can be enlisted per team. It was made to ensure  parity in the league as teams with deep pockets can easily win the championship by forming a team full of ex-PBA players.

The insistence of the MPBL to keep the roster limit on ex-pros will not lessen the number of basketball players who can make a living. As of this writing, there are thousands of basketball players who are raring to get a slot in the MPBL. If there are players who can no longer return to the MPBL, either by choice or not, there will always be someone who can take up their spot.

In the end, the MPBL need not amend its rule just to accommodate the NBL or the VisMin Supercup. Nonetheless, it will not hurt the MPBL if it can cooperate with them. Perhaps the VisMin Supercup can schedule its games during the off-season of the MPBL so that players can have a living all year round.