The Difference Between The G League and the D League

One reason why NBA players are able to get jobs is the fact that it has put up a developmental league called simply as the D League where each of the teams gets its own affiliate team.

Under D League rules, players can be called up anytime to sign at least a 10-day contract with any NBA squad if they do well with their respective D League teams.

And if those players do extremely well, their contracts can be extended until the end of the regular season and all the way to the playoffs.

One case is Yogi Ferrell, a shooting guard who signed a two-year contract with the Dallas Mavericks after toiling in the D League before initially signing a 10-day pact and getting extended because of his solid play.

Next season, the NBA D League will now be known as the NBA G League after it signed a marketing deal with the popular sports drink Gatorade. Aside from this, more NBA teams will put up D League affiliate teams.

In contrast, the Philippines' pro league, the PBA, also has its own D League but its concept is totally different because the players here are purely amateurs who are still going through college and they have to go through the rookie draft to join the big league unlike in the NBA D League where its players are already pros and can be called up anytime for an NBA promotion.

In addition, the PBA D League taps mostly school teams sponsored by a corporate firm and most companies who are in that league are the small-time ones. Only two PBA franchises have D League affiliates -- Cignal under the MVP Group and Blustar under Blackwater, which is a guest team made up mostly of Malaysian players.

Blustar, however, has two players from Blackwater in Tristan Perez and Jason Melano who were assigned to the D League in a process similar to NBA players being assigned to D League teams in order for them to gain more playing exposure.

And it is only in the PBA D League that you see a school team in Jose Rizal University. US NCAA college teams playing in the NBA D League would find themselves blown out because the US NCAA college game has totally different rules compared to the NBA.

In fairness, the PBA D League uses the same rules as the PBA and NBA although the biggest difference is that D League games have only 10-minute quarters, which is common under FIBA rules.

The main reason why the PBA D League accepts school-based teams is because this is a rule that was carried over from the defunct Philippine Basketball League, which folded up in 2011 after more than 25 years in existence due to Commissioner Chino Trinidad deciding to focus more on his career as a sportscaster and news reporter for GMA Network.

During the PBL's heyday, rival schools Ateneo and La Salle put up teams sponsored by Pioneer Insurance and ICTSI, respectively, Even Letran joined hands with Toyota Otis to form a PBL team.

Even the television coverage of both leagues is miles apart. NBA D League games are shown live on Facebook although some matches were aired live on NBA TV and ESPN.

PBA D League games are currently shown on a next day delayed basis on Aksyon TV Channel 41 which has a limited reach for those who don't have cable television.

The PBA D League has an age limit of 30 years old while in the NBA D League, former NBA players like Baron Davis have been allowed to play no matter how old they are.

And once a PBA D League player reaches the age limit, he has no other choice but to play in smaller leagues while another option is the ASEAN Basketball League which is a regional league like the NBA but uses FIBA rules.

As you can see, the NBA D League and its Philippine counterpart are miles apart in terms of concept and format. This is where the PBA needs to step up more and improve its D League concept in order to provide jobs for players.