PBA tackles 3x3 tourney

The staging of the inaugural 3x3 tournament will be the main agenda when the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) board of governors convenes today.

PBA chair Ricky Vargas said the 3x3 committee led by competition chair Dickie Bachmann and tournament director Eric Altamirano will present before the board their game plan for the event, which is expected to take place before the regular season on 9 April. “The top agenda of the meeting is the PBA 3x3,” Vargas, who also serves as TNT Tropang Giga governor, told the Daily Tribune in an interview yesterday. “We will also discuss marketing programs for next season.”

Altamirano, who previously served as Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3x3 commissioner, was tasked to run the show for the PBA’s own version of a three-a-side contest.

The noted mentor said the competition is tentatively set on 19 March with the 12 PBA teams, together with a couple of guest teams, set to see action.

Altamirano added that his committee would also discuss the budget proposal he prepared together with other committee members Ronnie Magsanoc, Joey Guanio and Eric Castro.

“I already met with Dickie, Ronnie, Joey and Eric Castro and we’re now in the process of coming up with a budget,” Altamirano said.

“We will present everything to the PBA board of governors and we will lay down all the groundwork and plans and programs for the 3×3 competition.”

PBA’s 3x3 event is expected to be a big hit, especially now that the country’s top 3x3 players like Joshua Munzon and Alvin Pasaol joining the Annual Rookie Draft on 14 March.

Vargas, meanwhile, added that aside from the launching of the event, they will also tackle various marketing plans that they will implement come the 46th season, which is either taking place in another bubble or in a closed-circuit setup.