One proposal was met with optimism.
PBA teams will be entitled to challenge calls beginning this offseason.
This after the league announced on Thursday on its website it will implement the “head coach challenge” when the PBA on Tour unfurls on May 21 at the Caloocan Sports Complex.
This was a welcome development for all the coaches, according to PBA deputy commissioner Eric Castro.
“A major change or rule introduction is the head coach challenge. Gusto ito ng lahat ng coaches,” said Castro in an article on the PBA site.
In this trial phase, each team will have one challenge per half, Castro told One Sports.
This was only among the proposed changes the league is looking to employ on a trial basis.
PBA commissioner Willie Marcial said these changes, which also include the “transition take foul” and changes on “ejection from technical and flagrant fouls,” aim to make the games “more exciting.”
“As much as the teams will have the opportunity to try new combinations and game schemes, the league will take the opportunity to experiment new rules and rule interpretations with the objective of improving the PBA and make it even more exciting,” said Marcial, who drafted the proposals with the PBA technical team, in the same article.
Before the new season opens, the proposed changes will be scrutinized by league officials and coaches anew. After that, the PBA board of governors will decide on whether to permanently employ them.
(Editor's note: This article has been updated as of May 5, 2023 to reflect the allowed challenges per team.)
(GM)