Despite the untimely events COVID-19 has laid upon, the Philippine Basketball Association’s proposal to recommence the ceased 2020 Season in a bubble to be held at Clark, Pampanga boosts ahead.
The 2020 Philippine Cup is the sole conference of the 2020 PBA Season to be approved by the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases to foster games and scrimmages starting October 11.
The said tourney will take place at Angeles University Foundation in Angeles City, where some of the sporting events for the 30th Southeast Asian Games occurred. The teams will be housed at the Quest Hotel in Mimosa – a 15-20-minute ride to the playing ground.
By the 25th of September, each team needs to submit their final roster, and everyone is set to adjourn for Clark on September 28 to 29 before the league closes the bubble’s door until October 10.
The proposed bubble does not allow any of the 350 people – including the players, coaching staff, referees, media, and the committee members – will be subjected to the bubble, all of which will be tested before leaving for the bubble.
A fine of P100,00, five-game suspension for the coming season, and loss of salary will be penalized for any players who will violate the rule – no leaving of the bubble. The coaches, hotel staff, security and the media will also be under the fine. Only injured players and eliminated teams can leave the bubble after testing.
If any player or personnel will be tested positive for COVID-19, they will promptly be taken out of the bubble and will be brought to a nearby isolation facility.
The tournament will still be a single round robin elimination, and a twice-to-beat advantage will be granted to the top four teams. Best-of-five series will take action in the semi-finals, whilst the teams will play best-of-seven in the finals. Elimination round games will be played twice a day for seven days a week. The schedule for the playoffs is still not clear, but in recent conferences, the quarterfinals and semifinals were held daily, and the finals were held on Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday.
To hype up the games, virtual fans from across the country will also be projected in live games to fill-up the once mammoth-crowded tournament.
(Image used is under Creative Commons.)
Ioshua Yambao
The Rural Echo
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