MANILA, Philippines – The resumption of the PBA Governors’ Cup is now in the works.

PBA commissioner Willie Marcial on Monday, January 24, said the board of governors agreed to restart the stalled Governors’ Cup in February with the number of coronavirus cases, particularly in Metro Manila, starting to drop.

Marcial said the league was just waiting for the approval of local government units (LGUs) for the return of scrimmages as the board of governors acknowledged that teams should be given 10 days to practice.

The PBA tapped the help of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority to secure the go signal of the six LGUs – Quezon City, Pasig, Pasay, Mandaluyong, San Juan, Parañaque – where the 12 PBA teams train.

“We can finish [the conference.] As long as we start again, we can finish it for sure,” Marcial said in Filipino. “Let us just hope that there will be no new variants. But with Omicron, we can manage.”

If scrimmages resume on Wednesday, January 26, then the earliest the Governors’ Cup reopens is on February 6.

The PBA successfully welcomed back live audiences in December and even hosted nearly 5,000 fans at the Araneta Coliseum for its Christmas Day games.

However, the league decided to postpone the Governors’ Cup indefinitely earlier in January following the rise of coronavirus cases in the country.

Now, Marcial said the PBA is in talks with the Araneta Coliseum, Ynares Sports Arena, and Mall of Asia Arena, which are the top choices as venue for the resumption of the season-ending conference.

“There is no final decision yet so we will see,” Marcial said.

Marcial added the PBA 3×3 league will begin its second conference a week after 5-on-5 action resets. – Rappler.com