Philippine Basketball Association
The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a professional basketball league in the Philippines founded in 1975. It is the first and the oldest professional basketball league in Asia, probably the world's second oldest premier pro-basketball league after the United States' National Basketball Association (NBA). The league's rules are a hybrid of those established by FIBA and the U.S. National Basketball Association.
Teams
As of 2005, the league has the following teams (followed by their coaches in parentheses):
- Air21 Express
- Alaska Aces - (Tim Cone)
- Coca-Cola Tigers - (Eric Altamirano)
- Barangay Ginebra Kings - (Siot Tanquincen)
- Purefoods Chunkee - (Ryan Gregorio)
- Red Bull Barako - (Yeng Guiao)
- San Miguel Beermen - (Jong Uichico)
- Sta. Lucia Realtors - (Alfrancis Chua)
- Shell Turbo Chargers - (Leo Austria) (Filed leave of absence from the league)
- Talk N' Text Phone Pals - (Joel Banal)
Players
The PBA boasts the Philippines' cream of the crop. Most of the present-day superstars of the league are also members of the Philippine National Team A. Having a 30-year history, Filipino basketball fans saw the likes of Allan Caidic, Hector Calma, Ramón Fernández, Robert Jaworski and Alvin Patrimonio strut their stuff. "El Presidente" Fernández and "The Captain" Patrimonio are of special mention, as they are the only two cagers to win four Most Valuable Player trophies.
Champions
Here is a list of recent champion teams. The Crispa Redmanizers (1979 and 1983), San Miguel Beermen (1989) and the Alaska Milkmen (1996) hold the distinction of winning all of the championships in one calendar year (aka "Grand Slam").
| Season | Conference | Champion | Runner-Up |
| 1975 | All Filipino | Toyota | Crispa |
| Invitational | Toyota | Crispa | |
| Open | Crispa | Toyota | |
| 1976 | All Filipino | Crispa | Toyota |
| Invitational | Crispa | Toyota | |
| Open | Crispa | Toyota | |
| 1977 | All Filipino | Crispa | Toyota |
| Invitational | Crispa | Toyota | |
| Open | Toyota | Crispa | |
| 1978 | All Filipino | Toyota | FilAm Bank |
| Invitational | UTex | Crispa | |
| Open | Toyota | Tanduay | |
| 1979 | All Filipino | Crispa | Toyota |
| Invitational | Royal | Toyota | |
| Open | Toyota | Crispa | |
| 1980 | Open | UTex | Toyota |
| Invitational | N. Stoodley-USA | Toyota | |
| Open | Crispa | Toyota | |
| 1981 | Open | Toyota | Crispa |
| Reinforced | Crispa | UTex | |
| 1982 | Reinforced Filipino | Toyota | San Miguel |
| Invitational | San Miguel | Crispa | |
| Open | Toyota | Gilbey's Gin | |
| 1983 | All Filipino | Crispa | Gilbey's Gin |
| Reinforced Filipino | Crispa | Great Taste | |
| Open | Crispa | Great Taste | |
| 1984 | All Filipino | Crispa | Great Taste |
| All Filipino | Great Taste | Beer Hausen | |
| Open | Great Taste | Crispa | |
| 1985 | Open | Great Taste | Magnolia |
| All Filipino | Great Taste | Shell | |
| Reinforced | Northern | Manila Beer | |
| 1986 | Reinforced | Tanduay | Great Taste |
| All Filipino | Tanduay | Ginebra | |
| Reinforced | Ginebra | Manila Beer | |
| 1987 | Open | Tanduay | Great Taste |
| All Filipino | Great Taste | Hills Bros. | |
| Reinforced | San Miguel | Hills Bros. | |
| 1988 | Open | San Miguel | Purefoods |
| All Filipino | Añejo | Purefoods | |
| Reinforced | San Miguel | Shell | |
| 1989 | Open | San Miguel | Shell |
| All Filipino | San Miguel | Purefoods | |
| Reinforced | San Miguel | Añejo | |
| 1990 | First Conference | Shell | Añejo |
| All Filipino | Presto | Purefoods | |
| Third Conference | Purefoods | Alaska | |
| 1991 | First Conference | Ginebra | Sarsi |
| All Filipino | Purefoods | Shell | |
| Third Conference | Alaska | Ginebra | |
| 1992 | First Conference | Shell | San Miguel |
| All Filipino | San Miguel | Purefoods | |
| Third Conference | Swift | 7-Up | |
| 1993 | All Filipino | Coney Island | San Miguel |
| Commissioner's | Swift | Purefoods | |
| Governors' | San Miguel | Swift | |
| 1994 | All Filipino | San Miguel | Coney Island |
| Commissioner's | Purefoods | Alaska | |
| Governors' | Alaska | Swift | |
| 1995 | All Filipino | Sunkist | Alaska |
| Commissioner's | Sunkist | Alaska | |
| Governors' | Alaska | San Miguel | |
| 1996 | All Filipino | Alaska | Purefoods |
| Commissioner's | Alaska | Shell | |
| Governors' | Alaska | Ginebra | |
| 1997 | All Filipino | Purefoods | Gordon's |
| Commissioner's | Gordon's | Alaska | |
| Governors' | Alaska | Purefoods | |
| 1998 | All Filipino | Alaska | San Miguel |
| Commissioner's | Alaska | San Miguel | |
| Centennial | Mobiline | Shell | |
| Governors' | Shell | Mobiline | |
| 1999 | All Filipino | Shell | Tanduay |
| Commissioner's | San Miguel | Shell | |
| Governors' | San Miguel | Alaska | |
| 2000 | All Filipino | Alaska | Purefoods |
| Commissioner's | San Miguel | Sta. Lucia | |
| Governors' | San Miguel | Purefoods | |
| 2001 | All Filipino | San Miguel | Ginebra |
| Commissioner's | Red Bull | San Miguel | |
| Governors' | Sta. Lucia | San Miguel | |
| 2002 | Governors' | Purefoods | Alaska |
| Commissioner's | Red Bull | Talk 'N Text | |
| All Filipino | Coca-Cola | Alaska | |
| 2003 | All Filipino | Talk 'N Text | Coca-Cola |
| Invitational | Alaska | Coca-Cola | |
| Reinforced | Coca-Cola | San Miguel | |
| Fiesta | Barangay Ginebra | Red Bull | |
| 2004- 2005 |
Philippines | Barangay Ginebra | Talk 'N Text |
| Fiesta | San Miguel | Talk 'N Text |
The San Miguel Beermen leads the league with seventeen championships on its belt, the latest of which was won in the 2005 Fiesta.
Most Valuable Players
| Season | Player | Team | College |
| 1975 | Bogs Adornado | Crispa | UST |
| 1976 | Bogs Adornado (2) | Crispa | UST |
| 1977 | Freddy Hubalde | Crispa | Mapúa |
| 1978 | Robert Jaworski | Toyota | UE |
| 1979 | Atoy Co, Jr. | Crispa | Mapúa |
| 1980 | Philip Cezar | Crispa | JRC |
| 1981 | Bogs Adornado (3) | UTex | UST |
| 1982 | Ramon Fernandez | Toyota | San Carlos |
| 1983 | Abet Guidaben | Crispa | USJ-R |
| 1984 | Ramon Fernandez (2) | Beer Hausen | San Carlos |
| 1985 | Ricardo Brown | Great Taste | Pepperdine |
| 1986 | Ramon Fernandez (3) | Tanduay | San Carlos |
| 1987 | Abet Guidaben (2) | San Miguel | USJ-R |
| 1988 | Ramon Fernandez (4) | SMB/P'Foods | San Carlos |
| 1989 | Benjie Paras | Shell | UP |
| 1990 | Allan Caidic | Presto | UE |
| 1991 | Alvin Patrimonio | Purefoods | Mapúa |
| 1992 | Ato Agustin | San Miguel | Lyceum-Pampanga |
| 1993 | Alvin Patrimonio (2) | Purefoods | Mapúa |
| 1994 | Alvin Patrimonio (3) | Purefoods | Mapúa |
| 1995 | Vergel Meneses | Sunkist | JRC |
| 1996 | Johnny Abarrientos | Alaska | FEU |
| 1997 | Alvin Patrimonio (4) | Purefoods | Mapúa |
| 1998 | Kenneth Duremdes | Alaska | Adamson |
| 1999 | Benjie Paras (2) | Shell | UP |
| 2000 | Danny Ildefonso | San Miguel | NU |
| 2001 | Danny Ildefonso (2) | San Miguel | NU |
| 2002 | Willie Miller | Red Bull | Letran |
| 2003 | Paul Asi Taulava | Talk ‘N Text | Brigham Young-HI |
| 2004-05 | Eric Menk | Barangay Ginebra | Lake Superior St |
Rivalries
As with any other sports league, the PBA had more than its fair share of rivalries, resulting in soaring gate reciepts. The most popular of them all was the Crispa-Toyota Rivalry of the 1970s. Fans from both camps religiously supported their teams and came in droves at the Araneta Coliseum or wherever the two nemeses met. So passionate the players were that they even engaged in a major brawl, where both teams were arrested and detained for one night in jail.