MANILA, Philippines – Basketball may be a long-time Filipino passion, but the odds of a homegrown player making it to the sport’s biggest stage have long been slim.

The NBA, though, might just have given Filipinos a work around to make it to the league. 

Sure, there won’t be a Pinoy strutting his stuff with LeBron James soon. But the NBA 2K League – the league’s latest eSports venture – can give Filipino basketball fans a shot at playing (virtually, that is) for a real NBA franchise.

And of course, getting a salary ranging from $32,000 to $35,000 isn’t too shabby, either.

“I think eventually we’ll look to have teams outside of the US participating in the NBA 2K League,” said NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum, who’s visiting Manila for the first time.

“This to me could be a league that’s truly global in nature. Maybe we can have a Philippines division, a China division. And you could have a team from Manila playing against a team from L.A. That’s the beauty of this technology.” 

@76ersGC captured the first-ever @NBA2KLeague tournament championship with a win over @blazer5gaming on Saturday! #ItsOurTime pic.twitter.com/pm6i56IaU3

— NBA (@NBA) May 7, 2018

 The NBA had called the 2K League its “4th league” as it also started with a Draft presided over by commissioner Adam Silver.

 A total of 17 of the 30 NBA franchises have a squad in the league based on the best-selling basketball video game. 

“Our players are big fans of the 2K product, and our fans love the game,” Tatum shared in a round-table discussion with select Philippine media. “It’s one of the best-selling sports games in the world. And so as we started thinking about the eSports landscape, we started thinking, ‘We have this game, why don’t we start our own league?’” 

Each team has 6 players, who before the draft, all came from an open casting of gamers who have won at least 50 games on NBA 2K’s difficult Pro-Am setting.

A total prize pool of US$ 1 million is at stake in the 2K League that kicked off last week. It features a 15-week regular season, two playoffs, and 3 independent tournaments.

“I think we’re creating this new superstar athletes with guys like Dimez  (point guard Artreyo “Dimez” Boyd from Ohio), the No. 1 Draft pick who’s already being called the LeBron James of eSports,” said Tatum. “They are passionate about the game, they love the game. It’s a fantastic way for us to expand our fanbase.”

And for Tatum, the Philippines will always be top of mind.

“There is really no place like the Philippines when it comes to basketball,” he said. “Ninety-nine percent of Filipinos know the NBA. When you look at our social media, on Facebook, the number one region that participates in our global page is the Philippines.”

“The fans here are so knowledgeable,” he added. “We’re still very optimistic about us growing here.” – Rappler.com

Sportsmanship at its finest.

No. 1 overall pick @DatBoyDimez of @MavsGG congratulates @76ersGC on winning THE TIPOFF. pic.twitter.com/kjswQJTBOc

— NBA2KLeague (@NBA2KLeague) May 6, 2018