James Yap

MVP Year(s): 2005-06 (Purefoods)
College: University of the EAst

From wikipedia:

James Carlos Yap, Sr. (born February 15, 1982), from Escalante, Negros Occidental, is a Filipino professional basketball superstar for the Purefoods Tender Juicy Giants in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He was a 2005-2006 season's Most Valuable Player, and is now fast becoming one of the most promising personalities in the professional ranks. Now in his fourth year, he is already a four-time PBA South All-Star team starter through 2004 to 2007.

Eric Menk

MVP Year(s): 2004-05 (Brgy. Ginebra)
COllege: Lake Superior St.

From wikipedia:

Eric Conrad Menk (born on August 24, 1974 in Michigan, U.S.) is a Filipino-American professional basketball player in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) for the Barangay Ginebra Kings. Known as the Major Pain, Menk was the 2004-05 PBA Most Valuable Player.

He also had a successful stint in the Philippine Basketball League for the Tanduay Rhum Masters and also a former member of the Philippine National Team.

Asi Taulava

MVP Year(s): 2003 (Talk 'N Text)
College: Brigham Young Hawaii

From wikipedia:

Pauliasi Taulava (born March 2, 1973) is a Filipino-Tongan professional basketball player for the Talk N' Text Phone Pals in the Philippine Basketball Association. He is also a member of the Philippines national basketball team in international competitions.

Taulava is considered by many to be perhaps the greatest Filipino basketball player to ever play the center position in the PBA. His offensive and defensive post game coupled with his enormous 6'9", 275-pound frame has overwhelmed opposing teams on a consistent basis.

However, Taulava is also one of the most controversial figures in Philippine basketball due to his numerous issues about his citizenship since he arrived in the local basketball scene in 1997.

He is also known for his dyed hair, although he has also shaved his head bald numerous times in the past.

Willie Miller

MVP Year(s): 2002 (Red Bull)
2006-07 (Alaska)
College: Colegio San Juan de Letran

From wikipedia:

Willie Miller (born on July 13, 1977 in Olongapo City, Philippines) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the Alaska Aces in the Philippine Basketball Association.

After an amateur career with the Letran Knights in the NCAA and a short stint with Tanduay in the Philippine Basketball League, Miller joined the Metropolitan Basketball Association for the Nueva Ecija Patriots from 1999-2000. During his tenure in the Metropolitan Basketball Association Miller made it to the MBA First Five in 1999.

He joined the PBA in 2001 and was the top overall pick of the Batang Red Bull Thunder in the draft. In 2002, he was named as the PBA's Most Valuable Player. He later joined the Talk N' Text Phone Pals from 2004-2006 before being traded to Alaska, and again being named Most Valuable Player in the 2006-07 season.

Danny Ildefonso

MVP Year(s): 2000, 2001 (San Miguel)
College: National University
ROY: 1998 (San Miguel)

From wikipedia:

Ildefonso was discovered after suiting up for his native Pangasinan in the Palarong Pambansa. He played for the NU Bulldogs in the UAAP, teaming up with fellow Pangasinense and later-AGFA and San Miguel teammate Lordy Tugade, leading the Bulldogs to respectable finishes in the UAAP. He later played for AGFA in the Philippine Basketball League but had a difficult time leading the Photokina franchise to the title, losing to Tanduay in championship matches.

Ildefonso led the Philippines to a gold-medal in 1997 Southeast Asian Games alongside Rommel Adducul and Ralph Rivera.

Kenneth Duremdes

MVP Year(s): 1998 (Alaska)
College: Adamson University

From PBA.ph:

At first, he was heralded as the second coming of Bog Adornado. Later, he unveiled a leaping ability and a perimeter game that had everybody comparing him to Meneses. But in 1998, Duremdes established his own identity and walked away with the league's highest and most elusive individual award, the Most Valuable Player trophy.

Earning a reputation as the most destructive offensive weapon in the amateurs, Duremdes joined Sunkist in 1995 and spent two uneventful seasons there under the shadows of Meneses. His transfer to Alaska two seasons later paved the way for his emergence as a certified PBA superstar and his meteoric rise to MVP heights secured his place among the all-time greats.

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Johnny Abarrientos

MVP Year(s): 1996 (Alaska)
College: Far Eastern University

From PBA.ph:

He loved to dance. That's what he told to anybody who was willing to listen to him at the start of his career. The diminutive Abarrientos incorporated his dancing skills with his basketball talent and emerged as Asia's finest point guard. He could beat opponents with a quick first step or pop up for a jumper.

But the 5-8 former Far Eastern standout is at his deadliest when directing Alaska's intricate offense. His ability to spot the open man is uncanny and his defensive awareness is so high, bigger guards have a lot of trouble taking advantages of his size. In 1996, after steering Alaska to only the league's fourth triple crown, he became the shortest player ever to take home the MVP trophy.

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Vergel Meneses

MVP Year(s): 1995 (Sunkist)
College: Jose Rizal College

From PBA.ph:

Everybody was shocked when he lost to best friend Bong Raverna in the race for the Rookie of the year award in 1992. But everybody understood why. Ravena's team then, San Miguel, had a lot more success than Meneses Presto. But instead of allowing his morale to sag, Meneses continued his meteoric rise and eventually won the MVP award in 1995.

A high leaper blessed with a deft shooting touch, a dozen post moves and an eye for the open man, Meneses has been describe by coaches like Ron Jacobs as the most talented player ever to play in the PBA. His career was rocked with several controversies, the last of which split his partnership with the Conception franchise. But whether he was playing the role of Pop Cola's disgruntled superstar or Barangay Ginebra's resident hero, Meneses is a joy to behold.

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Ato Agustin

MVP Year(s): 1992 (San Miguel)
College: Lyceum of the Philippines

From PBA.ph:


When San Miguel took him in 1989, very few expected Ato Agustin to pierce the elite circle of MVP winners, especially since he was plucked from the draft by a San Miguel team that did not really have any job vacancies. But one by one, the beermen´s stalwarts aged or fell prey to injuries and by 1992, Agustin was thrust into the limelight. The Pampangas cager responded with aplomb, using his shooting skills and one-on-one moves to help San Miguel annex the All-Filipino crown.

He spent a couple more seasons with the Beermen before transferring to several PBA teams. He played one season in the rival Metropolitan Basketball Association but came back last year with Sta. Lucia. Unprotected by the Realtors in the dispersal draft this year, Agustin was picked by Red Bull to be its captain during its formative years.

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Alvin Patrimonio

MVP Year(s): 1991, 1993, 1994, 1997 (Purefoods)
College: Mapua Institute of Technology

From PBA.ph:

The Captain has ushered his best days to the door, but every now and then, Alvin Patrimonio will deliver a turn-back-the-time performance that will remind everybody just who exactly he is: A Four-time MVP in the league, Patrimonio was named to the list of 25 greatest players ever not just for his skill, but for his unquenchable desire to win and his willingness to put in a superhuman effort into the game. Patrimonio has earned almost every accolade the league has had to offer and has had his share of championships. He has represented the country as an amateur and a professional and was even the league's flagship when Robert Jaworski retired. A study in adaptability, Patrimonio moved his game further away from the basket when the players at the post got bigger and stronger.

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Allan Caidic

MVP Year(s): 1990 (Presto)
College: University of the East
ROY: 1987 (Great Taste)

From PBA.ph:

The 6-2 former national team standout will go down as the cager with the deadliest pair of shooting hands ever. His accuracy from the perimeter, especially from beyond the arc, was a story told and retold in the same hushed and awed tone that one would use in narrating myths. But everything about him from his legendary shooting touch to his undying desire to always win was true.

He started his career with Great Taste before making a move to San Miguel Beer. He owns the record for the most triples and the highest score by a local in one game. It is not farfetched to believe that those scoring records will weather the trials of time and it will take ages before anybody like him torches the nets of the PBA hardcourts again.

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Benjie Paras

MVP Year(s): 1989, 1999 (Shell)
College: University of the Philippines
ROY: 1989 (Shell)

From PBA.ph:

There are those who will dispute his first MVP award in 1989, the year San Miguel won a grand slam. In fact, even Norman Black found it funny that the MVP during the triple crown year did not come from the team that accomplished the feat. But what is non-debatable is the fact that Paras is the only player to win the MVP and Rookie of the Year awards in the same season. But his real claim to greatness is his heartwarming comeback story from his self-inflicted downfall. Coaxing himself out of a shell of his self-contentment, Paras won yet another MVP award, 10 Years after the first one launched him to superstardom. And that MVP trophy came in the year when several talented half-Filipinos threatened to duplicate his feat as top Rookie-MVP awardee. The way he defended his sacred space in the record books was truly an inspiring story.

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Ricardo Brown

MVP Year(s): 1985 (Great Taste)
College: Pepperdine
ROY: 1983 (Great Taste)

From PBA.ph:

Very few players could fire up the imagination of the fans the way the "Quick Brown Fox" did. His low-key demeanor and secretive ways had everybody picturing him as some sort of mercenary who came here like a Soldier of Fortune to earn lots of cash and eventually run back home to the United States. He was a lethal scoring machine who could also play the point and nearly led Great taste to a grand slam in 1985, the year he won an MVP trophy.

With his great depth from the perimeter, Brown led the league in scoring averages for three straight seasons from 1985 to 1987. He transferred to San Miguel Beer and helped the Beermen win a couple of championships. He was diagnosed with a heart ailment and had to fly back to the US. He is currently married to a Filipina.

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Abet Guidaben

MVP Year(s): 1983 (Crispa), 1987 (San Miguel)
College: San Juan Recoletos

From PBA.ph:

Often cast as the arch nemesis of Fernandez, Guidaben fuelled their rivalry with a strong inside game and his patented off-the-glass shot from the post. Some say his career may have bloomed even brighter if he had not been involved in heartbreaking - at least on his part - trades with Fernandez.

He leads the league in all-time offensive rebounds pulled and games played, and is second to Fernandez in minutes played, defensive rebounds, and total points. The 6-6 center won two MVP trophies, the last with San Miguel, the year before he was traded to Purefoods for Fernandez. He continued his journeyman ways late in his career before finally hanging his jersey after a stint with Shell.


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Ramon Fernandez

MVP Year(s): 1982 (Toyota), 1984 (Beer Hausen)
1986 (Tanduay), 1988 (SMB/P'Foods)
College: San Carlos

From PBA.ph:

Without doubt, he was the greatest player ever to strut his stuff in the PBA. A native of Maasin, Leyte, the 6-4½ beanpole mastered ever skill needed to play the game of basketball. He started out his career in the PBA rivalries. He dueled with Alberto Guidaben, was pitted against Philip Cezar and feuded on and off the court with Robert Jaworski. By the time he ended his career with an All-Filipino championship ring with San Miguel in 1994, the guy nicknamed "El Presidente" and the "Franchise" had neatly stuffed his vast trophy case with four Most Valuable Player trophies. He also ended leading the league in just about every statistical category. In 1989, when his spate of triple-doubles anchored San Miguel's grand slam run, he nearly brought home a fifth MVP.

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Philip Cezar

MVP Year(s): 1980
College: Jose Rizal College

From PBA.ph:

He was the original "Sultan of Swat" and the inventor of the stretch lay-up. His extraordinary long arms and his defensive quickness were a nightmarish mix for scorers who he played against during the prime. Despite his size, he was often assigned to guard the likes of Ramon Fernandez. He ranks second in all-time number of shots blocked behind Fernandez and his third in total rebounds and offensive rebounds.

In 1980, he won his only MVP trophy with Crispa. He stayed with the Redmanizers until the team disbanded, after which he joined legendary coach Baby Dalupan at Great Taste, where he teamed up with former Crispa teammates Bernie Fabiosa and Atoy Co. He went on to win a seat in public office and had a stint as an assistant to Robert Jaworski at the Ginebra bench.

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Atoy Co

MVP Year(s): 1979 (Crispa)
College: Mapua Institute of Technology

From PBA.ph:

The "Fortune Cookie" told how Crispa would fare in the old days. If he would wax hot from the perimeter, the Redmanizers were unbeatable. He is a member of the 5,000 and 10,000 points club and many feel that if the three-point arc were invented right at the time when the PBA started, Co would have added more points to his all-time total.

The one-time MVP capped his career with Great Taste and ventured into movies after his basketball stint. He often played a gun-toting cop or a bad guy firing at will. But the mention of his name will always conjure images of shooting of a different kind.

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Robert Jaworski

MVP Year(s): 1978 (Toyota)
College: University of the East

From PBA.ph:

Nowhere in this part of globe has a man been adored the way Robert Salazar Jaworski has. Although loved and hated in an equal mix, those whose loyalty was firmly rooted in the Big J never wavered in their support, even when time and age had eroded what had been one of the most dynamic skills in the game. Ruggedness was his calling card and his volcanic temper was his signature.

But when it came to dealing with the masses and dwelling among his minions, nobody exuded more charisma than Jaworski did. Oftentimes in his prime, his public appeal overshadowed his talent. But he definitely could play. Amidst all those jutted elbows and stuck-out legs was the talent to shoot the ball and pass it with enough savvy to stupendify an entire audience. His popularity later translated into a Senate seat.

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Freddie Hubalde

MVP Year(s): 1977 (Crispa)
College: Mapua Institute of TEchnology

From PBA.ph:

How he ever found ways to shine in a talent-laden Crispa squad is a proof of Freddie Hubalde's resiliency. He started out as an undersized forward who loved to score from underneath with his patented undergoal stab. Later on, he took his game outside and developed a medium range bank shot.

In 1977, when Crispa won two championships but fell short of its grand slam try, Hubalde took home his one and only MVP trophy after playing his finest season. He took his skills to several other teams but he was last a factor for the Tanduay ballclub that later disbanded and sold its franchise to Purefoods. There, teamed up with the likes of Mon Fernandez, Padim Israel and Willie Generalao.

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Bogs Adornado

MVP Year(s): 1975, 1976 (Crispa)
1981 (UTex)

College: University of Santo Tomas

From PBA.ph:

Everybody remembers how he would bury his classic jumper without any show of emotion. He was like a hired gun from the perimeter. A dead-serious deadshot. He started his career with Crispa where he established himself as one of the league's premier scorer. He suffered a knee injury late in his career nu came back with a vengeance with Tommy Manotoc and U-tex.

It was with the Wranglers, who became famous with that longest 16 seconds in basketball history, that Adornado chalked up a third MVP trophy. And the 6-2 shooter accomplished this feat before anybody had even repeated as the league's best individual player.

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