PBA: Call them the 'Kia Kamao' says Pacquiao

Manny Pacquiao on Monday revealed to GMA News’ Mav Gonzales that the expansion franchise of Kia Motors Corp. will be called “The Kia Kamao,” Gonzales tweeted out.

The monicker is a reference to one of Pacquiao’s nicknames, “Pambangsang Kamao” or “national fist”

.@MannyPacquiao says they will name their PBA team "Kia Kamao." @gmanews pic.twitter.com/dlVZhnt9Qj

— Mav Gonzales (@mavgonzales) June 9, 2014

Pacquiao was also formally announced as the team’s head coach early Monday afternoon.

The team will make its debut in the 2014-15 PBA season.

The squad’s ranks will be filled via an expansion draft. The league, while preventing Kia and the two other expansion clubs, NLEX and Blackwater, from making direct hires, did also give them the 11th-13th picks in the first round of the 2014 PBA Draft.

Gonzales also asked Pacquiao how he would juggle coaching Kia's PBA debut in October, about the same time he'd be in training camp for his scheduled November boxing fight, to which Pacquiao said that he'd just need time management. - AMD, GMA News