Retired basketball player Victor Pablo believes that lopsided trades favoring powerhouse PBA teams are negatively impacting the league’s viewership.
In an interview on DWAR Abante Radyo’s SPORTALAKAN program, Pablo stated that basketball fans are smart enough to recognize when a player-swap transaction is unfair.
“Sa totoo lang, matalino na ang mga fans ng PBA, kahit mga ordinaryong fan alam nila na, ‘Bakit ganun ang nangyari?’” Pablo said. “Minsan nga pati ako natatanong ng ordinaryong basketball fan kung bakit nangyari ‘yun (lopsided trades).”
Pablo, who previously played for the Shell Turbo Chargers, San Miguel Beermen, TNT Tropang Giga, and Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings, also mentioned that sister teams should not exist in the PBA, as they are affecting the league’s parity.
“Kung puwede nga lang walang sister teams, eh, kasi kahit tayong mga players alam natin kung hindi fair ‘yung trade, parang may pabor sa isang team,” Pablo said.
“Alam natin na ‘yung ganitong trade hindi dapat nangyari kasi pabor sa isang team, so kailangan parehas, kailangan walang unfair trades,” added Pablo, who currently works as an assistant coach for the Far Eastern University Tamaraws.
Basketball fans are citing various lopsided trades as one of the reasons for the declining support for PBA games.
