Basketball-crazy nation Philippines remains as one of the top markets for the NBA.

Proof of that is the sheer number of Filipino followers subscribed to the NBA's social media pages.

In a round table discussion with local sports scribes at the NBA Philippines' headquarters, NBA Asia Managing Director Ramez Sheikh said the the Philippines is the No. 1 market in terms of Facebook fans outside the US.

"We've got over 15 million followers from the Philippines in all of our social media handles. We've got content that caters specifically to our Filipino fans," he said.

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Sheikh believes the league's popularity will further increase with the FIBA World Cup 2023 just around the corner.

Manila will be co-hosting the World Cup together with Japan and Indonesia, which means that there will be an influx of NBA players visiting the host countries.

"There will be a lot of NBA players. They're going to have a chance to experience this wonderful city. And we can't wait to shine a spotlight on them when they're here in the region in August and September," he said.

In terms of subscription to NBA content, Sheikh said that there is an uptick of 15 percent in TV viewership and 169 percent in NBA League Pass visits from Pinoy fans.

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"When you look at the average viewership of people that are watching games here in the Philippines, it's second only to China," said Sheikh.