Almost a week ago, ESPN writer Brian Windhorst tweeted a rumor that can make local hoops fanatics go loco once again.
He said that the NBA’s Houston Rockets and Indiana Pacers will be Manila-bound to play an NBA regular season game at our local shores – a first in the Philippines. The venue is set to be held at the SM MOA Arena.
“According to @LingShuangFu Lakers & Warriors will play games in China next fall, Pacers and Rockets will play in Taipei and Philippines” Windhorst tweeted.
On the other hand, the rumored venue has published a series of tweets pertaining to the event’s confirmation publishing statements using their official account, @MOAArena, like “BIG THINGS ARE COMING TO MOA ARENA.”
Mall of Asia General Manager Arnel Gonzales also stated confirmation of the news in Spin.ph, conveying that teams from the NBA will play not just an exhibition – but a regular game that might feature Roy Hibbert and newly-minted All-Star Paul George with their Indiana Pacers facing the James Harden – Jeremy Lin duo and the rest of the Houston Rockets.
Jeremy Lin is the first Asian-American NBA player with Taiwanese descent that swept the whole world in total frenzy when he sparked “Linsanity” all over the NBA last year when he became the New York Knicks’ starting point after getting cut by two NBA teams and was bouncing back-and-forth from the NBA and D-League. All those changed when he “Linsanity” began to take over. He led the New York Knicks to a string of victories and final push for the last playoff spot for the East. He then became a Houston Rocket after the Knicks declined to match the offer sheet worth $25M initially offered by Houston.
