Source: GMANEWS
The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) has yet to start its Fiesta Conference but changes in league – from player trades to team names – continue to take place over the past two weeks.
Purefoods and Barako Bull join Burger King this season after their respective franchises opted to carry other products that are being offered by their parent companies.
Burger King ditched their blue, red and white uniforms and chose to don its old violet and white jerseys bringing back Lina Group’s Air21 Express, which is the same brand that placed runner-up to Barangay Ginebra in the Fiesta Cup’s 2007-2008 season.
Philippine Cup champion Purefoods shed its TJ Giants image and will now be known as the Derby Ace Llamados when the import-flavored Fiesta Conference opens on March 21.
“It’s one of our products from our B-Meg Line under San Miguel/Purefoods Corporation. We just want to promote it for marketing purposes and we feel that the PBA will be a good venue in terms of promoting it," Purefoods (Derby Ace) board representative and league vice chairman Rene Pardo told GMANews.TV.
The Derby Ace Llamados are gunning for a possible “modern-day grandslam" in the PBA.
Llamado is a Spanish word meaning called or named but its translation in Filipino is favored.
Barako Bull also chose to carry a new name in the PBA’s second conference as Photokina Marketing changed the Barako Bull Energy Boosters to the Barako Energy Coffee Masters.
Barako board representative Raffy Casiao said they opted for the name change in order to promote Photokina’s new product, Barako Energy Coffee.
Aside from the name change, the Coffee Masters will also have the Harbour Centre logo placed at the back of their jerseys. Harbour, an entity outside of Photokina, has been tapped as team sponsor.
Barako officials sought the PBA board’s approval to allow them to co-brand with Harbour Centre of businessman/sportsman Mikee Romero since the Photokina franchise is currently experiencing financial trouble.
The PBA board agreed for the co-branding rule, but the two companies are now under the microscope of the other member squads.
Based on the agreement, Harbour will be allowed to co-brand just for the Fiesta Conference but Barako will still run the basketball affairs of the squad.
And then, there’s the Express, who are back on the spotlight. The Express is Air21’s moniker.
The Lina Group decided to revert to its familiar brand name after giving exposure to one of its subsidiaries, Burger King, for one season.
But the Express are about to maximize the full use of the co-branding rule applied to all PBA member squads and will put Mail&More at the back of the team’s jersey.
Unlike Barako Coffee, there will be no problem for Air21 to put Mail&More on the Express’ uniforms since both are owned by the Lina Group of Companies.
Old and new faces will also shore up Air21’s chances in the coming Fiesta Conference.
Ren-Ren Ritualo, who started his career with Air21, is back in an Express uniform and will be reunited with former La Salle teammates Carlo Sharma and Mike Cortez, who was also one of those new acquisitions on the team.
Also back with the Express is Doug Kramer, who will join former Ateneo teammates Wesley Gonzales and Rich Alvarez, another new recruit.
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