Brian Scalabrine, Tim Hardaway Sr.

Former NBA players Tim Hardaway and Brian Scalabrine were recently in the Philippines to attend the NBA 3X Philippines 2018 presented by AXA. The basketball event took place at the Music Hall of SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City, Metro Manila, Philippines from August 25-26, 2018.

It was Scalabrine’s first time to travel to the Philippines and for him, it was an exciting opportunity to experience how the game is played in the country. He said, “As a basketball fan and analyst, I’m looking forward to interacting with the fans and sharing my knowledge with the talented athletes at the NBA 3X event.”

In the 2001 NBA Draft, the New Jersey Nets selected Scalabrine 35th overall. Currently an NBA analyst, he was a member of the 2008 NBA Champion Boston Celtics and served as an assistant head coach of the Golden State Warriors during the 2013-2014 NBA season.

The Golden State Warriors drafted Hardaway 14th overall in the 1989 NBA Draft. He served as an assistant coach of the Detroit Pistons from 2014 to 2017.

Hardaway was a five-time NBA All-Star and played 14 seasons in the NBA. In 1990, he was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team.

“It’s a great feeling to return to the Philippines and get reacquainted with the passionate Filipino fan base,” Hardaway  stated. “NBA 3X celebrates the vibrant culture of basketball, which will be in full display for fans to experience  throughout the weekend festivities.”

AXA Philippines was the presenting partner of NBA 3X Philippines 2018. CloudFone, Gatorade, Panasonic, Rexona, PLDT and Smart were the official partners along with the SM Mall of Asia and Spalding as supporting partners.

Preliminary tournaments started from August 11-12, 2018 at Benguet State University in La Trinidad, Benguet. It continued from August 18-19, 2018 at Don Bosco Technical Institute University to determine the participants in the playoffs at the SM Mall of Asia.

The competitive 3-on-3 tournament included divisions for boys (under-13, under-16, under-18, and open category) and girls (under-18 and open category). There were also an invitation-only celebrity division featuring local personalities and a division exclusive to AXA employees and distributors.