WHEN the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) held a bubble tournament last year, it was commissioner Willie Marcial who begged the players to sacrifice a few weeks away from their families and play inside the bubble in Clark, Pampanga. This time, it was the players who asked Marcial to resume the Philippine Cup which was stopped after two weeks because of rising Covid-19 cases in Metro Manila. The players even offered to shoulder some of the expenses just for the tournament to push through in a semi-bubble setup in Bacolor, Pampanga.

The commissioner obliged, with a smile.