WHERE many have tried, Buddy Encarnado of the Philippine Commercial Basketball League (PCBL) will try to succeed as he intends to revive the commercial basketball scene down south with the creation of the new league called the PCBL-Cebu.
Though still in its infant stages, Encarnado said that he will work with prospective teams to get going in January of next year, at the height of the frenzied Sinulog celebration.
“We should be ready by January. The first start would be the pre-Sinulog tournament. We intent to make use of the festivities to usher in the new PCBL- Cebu,” said Encarnado in a talk with Cebu Daily News during his visit here on Thursday, where he met with Cebu First District representative Gerald Anthony “Samsam” Gullas, who’s also a noted basketball enthusiast and player, aside from being the team manager of the University of the Visayas (UV) basketball squads.
“It’s good for Cebu. While it’s good for “panalay” players out of college to have job security, I find the main purpose of PCBL is to find hidden gems all over the province. Hidden gems that weren’t given the chance to succeed when they were younger,” said Gullas at the possibilities that the upcoming league might bring.
Encarnado said that they are looking at staging the tournament’s initial salvo at the Minglanilla Sports Complex which recently hosted the finals of the Emil’s Cup Basketball Tournament, a game that attracted over 10,000 people.
“I’d like to believe that this will be a new bandwagon here in the south. Maganda itong inumpisahan ng Cebu. The idea was enhanced by me but it came from Jerry Oberes (owner of Emil’s Fresh Chicken) because they wanted their tournament to be accredited,” said Encarnado.
As early as now, 11 teams have already signified their intention to participate, with Encarnado set to meet with several officials including Ormoc City Mayor, Richard Gomez.
Encarnado relayed that they will veer away from the normal fare of the commercial basketball competitions here.
“We will veer away from the normal five-day tournament. We will have to have a longer period, that when some team wins the championship, they will truly feel like it. Mga tatlong buwan, minimum. We will start with Cebu,” shared the longtime representative of the defunct Sta. Lucia franchise in the PBA.