A Hong Kong-based club team, the Bay Area Dragons, is raring to join the Philippine Basketball Association’s 47th Governors’ Cup later this year.
Officials of the PBA and the East Asia Super League said this after the Dragons’ entry has been accepted recently.
“We are preparing for the season this October. This is incredibly special,” said East Asia Super League’s co-Founder and CEO, Matt Beyer, after conferring with PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial on Zoom Monday.
The Bay Area Dragons, known as the Phoenixes, changed their name with respect to their participation in the PBA, which already has a team by the same name, the Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters.
The Dragons were established with the support of the Hong Kong Basketball Association and FIBA, the world governing body for basketball, to represent Greater China in EASL games.
Games will be held at Smart Araneta Coliseum or the SM Mall of Asia Arena with thousands in attendance.
The club’s roster will be a combination of top free agents from Hong Kong SAR, Mainland China, Macau SAR, and Chinese Taipei for its local players. Like all EASL teams, the club will also have one Asian import and two foreign import players, making up its dynamic roster. P. Atencio
EASL, which has a 10-year agreement with FIBA, will bring eight of Asia’s best teams in the region’s top leagues together every week to compete for a $1-million prize. EASL aims to be one of the top three leagues in the world by audience size and commercial revenue by 2025.