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MPBL postpones upcoming season as COVID-19 continues to haunt PH

MPBL fans will have to wait until next year before they can witness some basketball action again. MPBL (file photo)
By Ivan Saldajeno

MANILA--The COVID-19 pandemic shut down another sports league as the MPBL announced that the 2020-21 season will not push through.

In a stunning development on Monday night, the league opted to fully push its fourth season a year later.

"The 2020-21 MPBL Season is hereby suspended, and we will start our next season on June 12, 2021," Commissioner Kenneth Duremdes said in a memo sent to the member clubs.

Duremdes initially postponed only the season opener in hopes that COVID-19 will be put under control in the Philippines sometime later in the year.

However, with the uncertainty on when the Inter-Agency Task Force will place the provinces which have an MPBL representative under a modified general community quarantine, the earliest period for sporting events to resume play, the league pulled the plug for Season 4.

Despite the stoppage of play, Duremdes advised the teams to honor the contract of their players by giving them at least 20 percent of the salaries they agreed upon.

On the other hand, the PBA legend remains keen on finishing the current season, whose playoffs have been stalled due to the pandemic.

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