The new show will feature special interviews with prominent Filipino-American sports figures exploring the Philippines’ unique love affair with the game of basketball

Listen to the official trailer now HERE

NEW YORK – February 21, 2023 – iHeartPodcasts and the National Basketball Association (NBA) today announced “Hoops Paradise: The Philippines’ Love Of The Game,” a 6-episode podcast series that will explore the Philippines’ unique love affair with basketball and the NBA, and how the sport became a source of pride for the country. Each week, ESPN's Cassidy Hubbarth and Titan's Nikko Ramos will explore how the Philippines came to be a nation of Hoop Heads, from the origins of the world's second professional basketball league to Filipino Americans in the NBA today. “Hoops Paradise: The Philippines’ Love of The Game,” is available now. Listen to episode 1 HERE.

The first episode features interviews with Raymond Townsend, the first Filipino-American player in the NBA; Tim Cone, the most accomplished coach in Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) history with 25 titles; Miami Heat Coach Erik Spoelstra; ESPN Host Pablo Torre; and NBA G-League Assistant Coach Jimmy Alapag.

“Through our partnership with the NBA, we are honored to share these incredible stories with millions of basketball fans and iHeartPodcast listeners across the world,” said Will Pearson, President of iHeartPodcasts.

Throughout the season, co-hosts and sports experts Cassidy Hubbarth and Nikko Ramos will lead in-depth discussions with key figures from the PBA and NBA – past and present – to fully capture and explore the Philippines’ love for the game of basketball. Hubbarth is an accomplished reporter and host for several of ESPN’s signature properties, most prominently the NBA. She serves as a full-time reporter for ESPN game telecasts throughout the regular season and during the NBA Playoffs. Hubbarth has served as a regular college football studio host on ESPN and ABC and a WNBA studio host on ESPN. Ramos is a veteran sportscaster, writer and producer with decades of experience covering basketball,from the NBA to local leagues in the Philippines.

“Hoops Paradise: The Philippines’ Love of The Game” is distributed by iHeartPodcasts and is available on the iHeartRadio app and everywhere podcasts are heard.

About the NBA

The NBA is a global sports and media business built around four professional sports leagues: the National Basketball Association, the Women’s National Basketball Association, the NBA G League and the NBA 2K League. The NBA has established a major international presence with games and programming available in 215 countries and territories in more than 50 languages, and merchandise for sale in more than 100,000 stores in 100 countries on six continents. NBA rosters at the start of the 2020-21 season featured 107 international players from 41 countries. NBA Digital’s assets include NBA TV, http://NBA.com, the NBA App and NBA League Pass. The NBA has created one of the largest social media communities in the world, with 1.9 billion likes and followers globally across all league, team, and player platforms. Through NBA Cares, the league addresses important social issues by working with internationally recognized youth-serving organizations that support education, youth and family development, and health-related causes.