MANILA, Philippines – The AirAsia ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) will start their 2014 season on July 16, according to the tournament’s official website.
Six teams will suit up for the first and only regional professional league in South East Asia for their 5th season which starts two months from now.
Perennial championship contenders Indonesia Warriors will banner the lineup of participating squads along with pioneer teams Jobstreet.com Singapore Slingers and Westsports Malaysia Dragons where San Mig Coffee’s Justin Melton previously played.
The Vietnam-based Saigon Heat will also return for their third stint in the ABL.
Two new teams that will enter the competition are HiTech Bangkok City of Thailand and another Indonesian crew in Laskar Hang Tuah Dreya, making it the first time for Indonesia to field two teams in the ABL.
There will be a new champion this time as no Filipino team is set to compete in the ASEAN wars. The ABL failed to draw interest from a PH-based crew amid reports that the ABL is ready to fund a PH team.
However, the ABL still expects Filipino players to play as imports.
The ABL brought down the number of allowed ASEAN imports from three to two to allow more local talents to succeed. Teams may also field in two regular or world imports, and one heritage import (optional).
Some Filipino players who’ve previously made a big splash in the ABL are reigning MVP Asi Taulava and former MVP Leo Avenido. Star guards like Al Vergara, Marvin Cruz, Jai Reyes, and Froilan Baguion all had ABL exposure as well.
The 2014 ABL season schedule has yet to be released. – Rappler.com
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