Former Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) player and Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman Richard Bachmann believes the league needs to rethink its salary structure if it wants to remain competitive in an increasingly globalized Asian basketball landscape.
Bachmann, who won eight PBA championships during his playing career, has experienced Philippine basketball from multiple perspectives, both on the court and in sports administration.
Now, the veteran statesman is calling for changes to the PBA’s salary system, particularly as more of the country’s top players continue to explore opportunities in overseas leagues such as Japan’s B.League and the Korean Basketball League (KBL).
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Bachmann believes the PBA should consider removing its individual player salary ceiling and instead implement a stricter team-wide salary cap similar to the system used by the National Basketball Association (NBA).
The proposal, he said, would give PBA teams greater flexibility in determining how they allocate their payroll while still maintaining financial discipline across the league.
The issue has become increasingly important as several Filipino players have made the move overseas in recent years.
Among those who have played or pursued opportunities in leagues abroad are Kai Sotto, Kevin Quiambao, Dwight Ramos, Thirdy Ravena, SJ Belangel, Rhenz Abando, AJ Edu, Carl Tamayo and Ethan Alvano.
Other established PBA names, including Arvin Tolentino, Kiefer Ravena and Matthew Wright, have also opted to continue their careers overseas at various points, underscoring the growing appeal of foreign leagues to Filipino players.
For Bachmann, it is difficult to blame players for choosing those opportunities when the financial difference can be substantial.
“It’s really hard to compete. Teams are now competing not only among themselves in the PBA, but we are also competing against teams and leagues abroad. You have Japan, you have Korea,” Bachmann said.
“I don’t blame the players because I was a player before. It’s a no-brainer. If I’m a player and you are going to pay me three or four times what I can earn in the PBA, then I would go, ‘di ba?’”
The financial disparity has become one of the biggest challenges facing the PBA as it attempts to retain its best talent.
Overseas leagues, particularly in Japan and Korea, have increasingly been able to offer lucrative contracts to Filipino players, making it difficult for the PBA to compete purely on salary.
Bachmann: lift PBA players’ salary cap, enforce team cap strictly.
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Reports have indicated that some of the top B.League teams can offer Filipino players monthly salaries reaching the millions of pesos, while the PBA’s official maximum individual salary is significantly lower.
That gap, Bachmann believes, puts the PBA at a disadvantage when its teams attempt to convince elite players to stay in the domestic league.
Rather than simply raising the individual salary ceiling, however, Bachmann believes a different approach could provide teams with more room to compete for players.
His preferred solution is to eliminate the individual maximum salary while imposing a stricter overall team salary cap.
“The best option is to remove the individual salary cap and implement a stricter team salary cap. That’s an option,” Bachmann said.
“With a team cap, it’s better because teams can decide how to distribute their payroll, as long as they don’t exceed the total cap.”
Under such a system, teams would have greater freedom to prioritize their most valuable players and potentially offer competitive salaries to stars being pursued by foreign clubs.
At the same time, a league-wide team cap could prevent franchises with significantly greater financial resources from simply outspending their rivals, helping preserve competitive balance.
Bachmann’s proposal essentially seeks to strike a balance between player earning potential and financial sustainability for PBA teams.
The former PBA champion also acknowledged that league officials are already considering ways to respond to the changing basketball landscape in Asia.
“I’m sure the commissioner and the board are already discussing ways to adjust and keep pace with the other leagues, so hopefully they are,” he added.
The challenge facing the PBA is becoming more pronounced as Asian basketball continues to develop.
The B.League has established itself as an increasingly attractive destination for Filipino talent, while the KBL and other international leagues also continue to provide opportunities for players seeking stronger competition and more lucrative contracts.
For the PBA, retaining its top players is not simply about protecting the league’s star power. It is also about maintaining its position as the Philippines’ premier professional basketball competition at a time when Filipino players have more international options than ever before.
Bachmann’s proposed salary restructuring could give teams more flexibility to respond to those opportunities while maintaining a system designed to prevent excessive spending.
Whether the PBA ultimately adopts such a model remains to be seen, but the growing movement of Filipino players overseas has made the issue increasingly difficult for the league to ignore.
As Asian basketball becomes more competitive, the PBA may have to adapt its financial and organizational structure if it wants to keep its best players at home — and remain competitive with the leagues that are increasingly competing for Filipino basketball talent.
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