The BC Wolves continue to create new basketball success stories and partnerships not just in Lithuania and Europe, but in Asia as well when it showed its participation in the regional Asian tournament, the East Asia Super League (EASL).
The club was represented by its Regional Manager Glenmarc Antonio when he attended the EASL Final Four weekend festivities held in Cebu, a popular Philippine island destination also known as the “Queen City of the South”. The EASL is hosting its Final Four championship in Lapu-lapu City’s “Hoop Dome” on March 8-10, 2024 with four regional powerhouse teams from South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan vying for the first-ever EASL championship trophy.
The tournament features a similar home-and-away format to the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague and the BKT EuroCup, the latter of which the Wolves joined for the first time in season 2023-24 and notched an 8-10 win-loss slate in the club’s maiden season.
During the pre-event press conference, G.Antonio was able to meet with top EASL executives and officials to talk about the BC Wolves and its shared aspirations in creating value for fans both watching live games in the arena and building interaction and engagement in the digital space – things that the EASL are very enthusiastic about. “We want to bring Asian basketball to the world,” said Dominic Tang, EASL’s Chief Operating Officer.
When asked about the possibility of growing their current line-up of eight participating teams, which includes Final Four hopefuls Seoul SK Knights, Anyang Jung Kwan Jang Red Boosters, Chiba Jets, and New Taipei Kings, EASL Chief Executive Officer Henry Kerins quipped “We’re going to take a measured approach on how we expand this – but our ambition is to go from 8 to 16 teams. There is a huge amount of development and expansion for us to do and that’s where the top basketball talent is in Asia. This is the beginning – (and by) 2025, you’re going to see a much more mature league – but yes, we will be expanding our presence and increasing the number of clubs that are participating.”
The league has secured an exclusive 10-year agreement with FIBA for recognition and support to launch and operate a new regional championship for professional clubs in Asia – with active participation from various national tournaments featuring eight teams from Greater China, Japan, Korea, and the Philippines. Incidentally, the BC Wolves’ former player Juan Gomez de Liano, the first homegrown male Filipino to play professionally in Europe, is now a member of the Korean club Seoul SK Knights but will not be participating in the Final Four clash as he recovers from a hand injury and is out for the season.
The EASL press con was also attended by EASL executives Adam Zecha – Head of Partnerships, Banjo Albano – Head of Philippines, and Kevin McCullagh – PR Director, as well as various players from the participating teams namely former NBA player Jeremy Lin, Hayden Blankley, Joseph Lin, Rhenz Abando, Oh Jae Hyun, and Filipino basketball legends Jay Washington (EASL Ambassador) and Danny Seigle.
The club thanks Carlo Singson, Founder and CEO of SEM (Sports, Entertainment, Media) Consultancy Ltd. and former head of NBA Philippines for the invitation to meet and discuss regional basketball with the EASL.
