For the sake of Gilas, PBA should return to two-conference format

(c) PBA Media Bureau

Our Philippine national team did it again as they managed to salvage a ticket to the 2019 FIBA World Cup that will happen in August 2019, in China.

That is a piece of great news for everyone, other than the schedule of the Philippine Basketball Association.

The current season, which was supposed to be 2018-2019, will now need to extend to February 2020.

That means the league will skip a year because of the scheduling issues with our national team.

Actually, coach Yeng Guiao and the head of Samahang Basketball ng Pilipinas are considering to join the 2019 Jones Cup which will further push the end of the current season to around March.

Next season could be much easier because we are already part of the 2023 World Cup for being one of the hosts.

But after that, the preparations would be on full-throttle again, and problems will pop out.

In reality, PBA will have a much easier time adjusting to FIBA if they size down to two-conference format.

Two-conference is of course much shorter in terms of time frame. Other than that, it is a much easier format to fit those FIBA breaks.

For the qualifying tournament, there are four windows which will force the PBA to have four two-weeks lull, at the minimum.

Add the two breaks between conferences, Philippine Cup to Commissioner's Cup and Commissioner's Cup to Governors' cup, of around three weeks and you already have fourteen weeks of PBA break.

We also have an offseason which could be four weeks at the minimum and the sum will rise to 18 weeks of no PBA action.

In the current format, a conference usually needs 13 weeks to finish. That means, 39 weeks in total. Add 39 and 18 and you will get 57 weeks in total, which is 5 weeks longer than the 52 weeks that a year provides.

By the way, do not forget that our national team will also compete in Asian Games and if they qualify, the Olympics.

And of course, they may have additional preparations which will further eat up some of the schedules of the PBA.

In short, there is no real wiggle room.

In a three-conference scheme, PBA will not have the option to quicken the pace of the conference because a conference that will only last for around eight weeks will be too fast for the fans of the PBA to appreciate.

A two-conference format of around 15 weeks-each may solve it. That will give 22 weeks to eat up the offseason, the FIBA windows, the break between the two conferences and other national team-related activities.