The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) has never seen its stock dropped like during this year’s All-Star break. It was supposed to be a festive and joyous occasion spent to keep players closer to its viewers, unfortunately there were only a handful of fans who troop to the venues.
The festivities started last 4 August with a visit of PBA players in the Heroes Ward of the V.Luna General Hospital, and a meet and greet session with the PBA players at the Ali Mall. The following day, there was an Obstacle Challenge, 3 point shootout, the slam dunk competition and the Blitz game between the Greats and Stalwarts.
On the third day, a clinic for referees was conducted in a covered court of Brgy. Pinagkaisahan, Quezon City, followed by a shooting stars contest and a women's 5x5 basketball exhibition.
The final event was an exhibition game between the North All-Stars and the South All-Stars. This is considered the main drawer of the All-Star Weekend, but failed to get any substantial number of patrons.
"Well, of course, we're quite disappointed right now, but it didn't matter to the players," Commissioner Chito Narvasa said. "They came out, they did their best. That's for the fans, they just want to show them that they appreciate the fans and I'm hoping the fans appreciate them."
"But that's the way it is," he added, citing the setting of the All-Star weekend. "When it's Manila talaga, I think there's something we can learn from this also. We'll see how it goes."
Meanwhile, an official of Araneta Coliseum bared that ticket sales of the PBA has dipped dramatically, failing to reach the 20,000 mark even during games of Barangay Ginebra and Star Hotshots, the two most popular teams in the league today.
"We’re surprised that fans are very sparse during games, actually, don’t quote me, pero mas in demand pa talaga yung UAAP women's volleyball as of late than the PBA," said the Big Dome official.
"We can't really assess from our end what went wrong, pero it's a huge drop considering that a few years ago, we were having problems with the ticketing," he added.
"Gone are the days when we will wait for PBA's advice to open up SRO (Standing Room Only) tickets," he said.
The festivities started last 4 August with a visit of PBA players in the Heroes Ward of the V.Luna General Hospital, and a meet and greet session with the PBA players at the Ali Mall. The following day, there was an Obstacle Challenge, 3 point shootout, the slam dunk competition and the Blitz game between the Greats and Stalwarts.
On the third day, a clinic for referees was conducted in a covered court of Brgy. Pinagkaisahan, Quezon City, followed by a shooting stars contest and a women's 5x5 basketball exhibition.
The final event was an exhibition game between the North All-Stars and the South All-Stars. This is considered the main drawer of the All-Star Weekend, but failed to get any substantial number of patrons.
"Well, of course, we're quite disappointed right now, but it didn't matter to the players," Commissioner Chito Narvasa said. "They came out, they did their best. That's for the fans, they just want to show them that they appreciate the fans and I'm hoping the fans appreciate them."
"But that's the way it is," he added, citing the setting of the All-Star weekend. "When it's Manila talaga, I think there's something we can learn from this also. We'll see how it goes."
Meanwhile, an official of Araneta Coliseum bared that ticket sales of the PBA has dipped dramatically, failing to reach the 20,000 mark even during games of Barangay Ginebra and Star Hotshots, the two most popular teams in the league today.
"We’re surprised that fans are very sparse during games, actually, don’t quote me, pero mas in demand pa talaga yung UAAP women's volleyball as of late than the PBA," said the Big Dome official.
"We can't really assess from our end what went wrong, pero it's a huge drop considering that a few years ago, we were having problems with the ticketing," he added.
"Gone are the days when we will wait for PBA's advice to open up SRO (Standing Room Only) tickets," he said.
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