No direct hires, but board gives PBA expansion teams more draft picks, ‘protect 12’

The PBA has made the best compromise it can offer to NLEX, Blackwater, and Kia, reducing the 10 member teams’ protected players from 14 to 12 and giving the three expansion clubs more picks in the incoming draft.

No direct hires of rookies, however, have been given to the new squads.

After a board meeting on Thursday revolving around concessions for the three incoming teams, Asia’s first professional basketball league has agreed to free two more players from each team from the original “protect 14” scenario.

That will free more players for the picking of the three new squads in the separate expansion draft, slated before the end of July. The pool will contain the unprotected players and the undrafted rookies.

The league has also given to the three new teams — apart from the 11th ,12th, and 13th picks — the first, second, and third selections of the second round, as well as the remaining picks from the third round onwards in the Rookie Draft on August 24.

“The board is trying to balance the interest of the three expansion teams and the ten member teams,” PBA commissioner Chito Salud said. “And the balance has been struck.” - Karlo Sacamos, SPIN