PBA's 50th anniversary celebration kicks off with logo reveal

The PBA board flashes the "5-0" sign as the league's 50th anniversary celebration begins. PBA Images

By Ivan Saldajeno

MANDALUYONG--The road to the PBA's 50th anniversary season began on Monday when the league revealed its special logo for the rest of Season 49 and the 50th season.

The updated version of the current logo now features the letters purely in gold, with the player silhouette, patterned after PBA legend Robert Jaworski, in black.

According to Commissioner Willie Marcial during the official logo launch on Monday at Launchpad, the 50th-anniversary logo will be seen in the player jerseys, referee's uniforms, and the staff's uniforms starting Feb. 26, when the league resumes after the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers break with the PBA Commissioner's Cup semifinals.

The logo reveal officially tipped off the PBA's golden jubilee which will see the league and its players participating in various major and community-based events.

The highly anticipated ones are the PBA anniversary itself on April 9 and the opening day for Season 50 on Oct. 5.

According to Marcial, though, they could move the grand anniversary celebration instead to sometime between April 11-13 to accommodate a bigger audience being the weekend after the foundation day itself.

For sure, the newest members of the PBA Greatest Players list will be enshrined on April 9.

A selection committee chaired by former PBA commissioner and SBP executive director Sonny Barrios has begun deliberating who will be the 10 past and present league superstars who will join the 40 previously enshrined players in the now PBA's 50 Greatest Players list.

PBA legend and former PSL commissioner Allan Caidic represented the selection committee in the logo reveal event.

Meanwhile, the Season 50 opening on Oct. 5 will see a grand homecoming of people who have been part of the PBA in various roles since its foundation in 1975.

One option being explored right now, according to Marcial, is the possibility of the Season 50 opening being a standalone event with the inaugural games to be played at another date, although according to him, the likelihood is that there will be one game to be played right after the grand opening event.

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