Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

is the most popular sport in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, played on both the amateur and professional levels.

History

Women playing basketball in Dagupan 1910

1917 Far Eastern Games basketball China v

Basketball was introduced in the Philippines during the

American colonial period The Thirteen Colonies, also known as the Thirteen British Colonies, the Thirteen American Colonies, or later as the United Colonies, were a group of British colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America. Founded in the 17th and 18th centur ...

with the first American teachers teaching the sport along with baseball through the

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams (philanthropist), Georg ...

and the school system. Basketball was first introduced to the Philippine public school system by the Americans as a women's sport in 1910 and was played in Interscholastic meets in 1911 until 1913. Women's basketball met opposition from conservative groups, particularly the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

who view bloomers worn by women basketball players as inappropriate. By the time skirts were allowed to be worn above bloomers as a compromise, women's basketball was already in decline and was only played in provincial and local interscholastic meets. Indoor softball and as well as volleyball became the more preferred sport for Filipino women. The first men's national team – organized in the 1910s – won the first

Far Eastern Championship Games The Far Eastern Championship Games (also known as the Far Eastern Championships, Far Eastern Games or Far East Games) was an Asian multi-sport event considered to be a precursor to the Asian Games. History In 1913, Elwood Brown, president of ...

1913 Events January * January 5 – First Balkan War: Battle of Lemnos – Greek admiral Pavlos Kountouriotis forces the Turkish fleet to retreat to its base within the Dardanelles, from which it will not venture for the rest of the ...

. In all but one of the ten editions of the games, the national team won the gold medal. The

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

(NCAA), which had basketball as its main sport, was established in 1924. The Philippines became a member of FIBA through the

Basketball Association of the Philippines The Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) was the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) recognized national governing body for basketball in the Philippines. It was recognized by the FIBA in 1936 until 2007 when the Samahang B ...

in 1936. The Philippines made their debut in the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a vari ...

in 1936 where they finished fifth, the best result of an Asian team in Olympic basketball history. In the same year, the first basketball stamp in the world was released by the country. The first commercial league was the basketball tournament of the

Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association The Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association (MICAA) was a sports association which existed in Manila, Philippines from 1938 to 1981. Throughout its existence, it staged various sports and was participated by prominent Philippine co ...

(MICAA) which was established in 1938. The Philippines became an independent country in 1946, and in the 1950s, the

national team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exa ...

did well in international tournaments. The Philippine team won the gold medal at the Asian Games in 1951, the first-time basketball was played. The Philippine basketball team dominated the Asian Games until 1962. In the 1954 FIBA World Championship the Philippines placed third, winning the bronze medal, the best performance by an Asian team in the World Championship. After missing the first FIBA Basketball World Cup (known through 2010 as the FIBA World Championship) that was held in

1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 crashes in a snowstorm. All 19 ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, the Philippines participated in the 1954 FIBA World Championship held at

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a ...

, Brazil. The Philippines finished with a 5–2 win–loss record in the Final Round games, and captured the bronze medal. The third place-finish is still currently the best finish by an Asian country in the World Cup. Carlos Loyzaga finished as the world tournament's third leading scorer (148 points/16.4 points per game) and was named in the FIBA World Mythical Five Selection. In the 1960s, the first FIBA Asia Championship was won by the Philippines with Carlos Badion as the tournament's Most Valuable Player. Meanwhile, the Philippines won the right to host the third FIBA World Championship, but were suspended after then-President Diosdado Macapagal, father of former President

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal Arroyo (, born April 5, 1947), often referred to by her initials GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician serving as one of the House Deputy Speakers since 2022, and previously from 2016 to 2017. She previously ...

, refused to issue visas to players from communist countries (notably basketball powerhouse

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

and the Soviet Union). The Philippines' dominance in sport waned after Carlos Loyzaga's retirement, and had performed poorly in the Olympic games where the national team was unable to break into top-10 positions. However, the country continued to play competitively in the Asian and World Championships. The commercial league model pioneered by the MICAA continued with the

Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines composed of twelve company-branded franchised teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia and is the se ...

(PBA) in 1975 and the Philippine Amateur Basketball League (PABL) in 1983. The PBA is the first professional basketball league in Asia and the second oldest in the world after the NBA. The league's regulations are a hybrid of rules from

FIBA The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. Originally known as the (hence FIBA), in 1989 it dropped the word ''amateur'' from its nam ...

and the NBA. The league was inaugurated on April 9, 1975. The PABL was established to fill the void created after the collapse of the MICAA in 1981. In 1978, the Philippines hosted the

FIBA World Championship The FIBA Basketball World Cup, also known as the FIBA World Cup of Basketball or simply the FIBA World Cup, between 1950 and 2010 known as the FIBA World Championship, is an international basketball competition contested by the senior men's nat ...

, marking the first time that the international tournament was held in Asia. In 1992, a poll was conducted by Enervon C asking 62 basketball experts to list their top ten Filipino basketball players of all time, with first place being worth ten points and a decrease in one point for each succeeding place. Ranking first was

Caloy Loyzaga Carlos "Caloy" Matute Loyzaga (August 29, 1930 – January 27, 2016) was a Filipino basketball player and coach. He was the most dominant basketball player of his era in the Philippines and is considered as the greatest Filipino basketball playe ...

, who received the most points with 603; in second place was

Robert Jaworski Robert Vincent Salazar Jaworski Sr. (; born March 8, 1946) is a Filipino former professional basketball player, head coach and politician who served as a Senator of the Philippines from 1998 to 2004. He played 23 seasons in the Philippine Ba ...

with 458 points, while third place went to

Ramon Fernandez Ramon Sadaya Fernandez (; born October 3, 1953) is a Filipino former professional basketball player and current commissioner of the Philippine Sports Commission. Fernandez won four PBA Most Valuable Player awards and a record 19 PBA titles. F ...

with 332 points. The Philippines was suspended by FIBA in 2005 due to a leadership crisis which affected the former national basketball association of the country – the

. In 2007, the

Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas The Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas () or the SBP is the national sport association for basketball in the Philippines, formed from the merging of the Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) and Pilipinas Basketball (PB). It was formed ...

became the newly recognized national basketball body for the Philippines by FIBA. In 2009, Smart Gilas Pilipinas was officially launched to help the Philippines qualify for the

2012 London Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

. They failed after finishing fourth in the

2011 FIBA Asia Championship The 2011 FIBA Asia Championship for Men is the intercontinental championship for basketball organized by FIBA Asia that doubles as a qualifying tournament for the men's basketball tournament of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, England, United K ...

. In 2013, the Philippines qualified for the

2014 FIBA World Cup The 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup was the 17th edition of the FIBA Basketball World Cup, the tournament previously known as the FIBA World Championship. Hosted by Spain, it was the last tournament to be held on the then-current four-year cycle ...

with a second-place finish in the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship. Gilas also qualified for the

2019 FIBA World Cup The 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup was the 18th tournament of the FIBA Basketball World Cup for men's national basketball teams. The tournament was hosted in China and was rescheduled from 2018 to 2019, becoming the first since 1967 FIBA World Ch ...

and is set to co-host the 2023 edition. That year also saw the boys' U-16 team qualify for the 2014 FIBA U-17 World Championship, and the boys' U-18 team winning the inaugural Fiba-Asia 3x3 U18 Championship. In 2015, the women's team was promoted to Level 1 after a win against India. In 2017, the

Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League The Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines. History Manny Pacquiao launched the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League on August 29, 2017, starting off as a semi-professional lea ...

(MPBL), a league with a home-and-away format, was inaugurated. Numerous other leagues with this format would follow, such as the National Basketball League (NBL) and the Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup. The 2020s also saw numerous Filipino basketball players play overseas in different leagues, with examples being Thirdy and

Kiefer Ravena Kiefer Isaac Crisologo Ravena (; born October 27, 1993) is a Filipino professional basketball player for Shiga Lakes of the Japanese B.League. Ravena played for the Ateneo Blue Eagles of the UAAP during his college days. He plays the point gua ...

and others in the Japanese B. League, Jack Animam in Serbia, and Kai Sotto in the Australian NBL.

National teams

;Senior * Men's ( in FIBA club tournaments) * Women's * Men's 3x3 * Men's wheelchair ;Youth * Boys' under-19 * Girls' under-19 * Boys' under-17 * Girls' under-17 *

Universiade The Universiade is an international multi-sport event, organized for university athletes by the International University Sports Federation (FISU). The name is a portmanteau of the words "University" and " Olympiad". The Universiade is referred ...

Leagues

Araneta Coliseum Basketball with Big Cube 2011

Men's

; Professional *

(since 1975) *

(since 2017) * National Basketball League (since 2018) * Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup (since 2021) *

Pilipinas Super League The Pilipinas Super League (PSL) is a professional basketball league in the Philippines. History The Pilipinas Super League (PSL) was founded in December 2021 by former officials of another league; the Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup. It was estab ...

(PSL) (since 2022) *

Filbasket The Filipino Basketball League, also known as Filbasket, is a professional basketball league founded in 2021 in the Philippines. Its first season was launched on October 28, 2021, featured eleven teams and ran for a period of 26 days. AICC Man ...

(Filipino Basketball League) (since 2021; professional since 2022) ; Amateur *

PBA Developmental League The PBA Developmental League, or PBA D-League, is the Philippine Basketball Association's official minor league basketball organization. History The PBA D-League was conceptualized after the collapse of the proposed merger between the Phil ...

(since 2011) ; Collegiate *

Philippine Collegiate Champions League The Philippine Collegiate Champions League (PCCL) is a national collegiate basketball championship league in the Philippines. Its tournament, known as the "National Collegiate Championship" (NCC) is sanctioned by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipin ...

(since 2002) * NCAA Basketball Championship (since 1924) *

UAAP Basketball Championship The UAAP Basketball Championship holds its basketball tournaments from September to December. Basketball is a mandatory sport in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP). All eight universities participate in the Men's, Women ...

(since 1938) *

Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. The Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (CESAFI) is a sports and academic association of 14 schools, colleges and universities in Cebu, Philippines. The CESAFI was established in 2001. History Before the creation of the CESAFI, there was alre ...

(since 2001) * National Athletic Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities (since 2001) *

National Capital Region Athletic Association The National Capital Region Athletic Association (NCRAA) is an athletic association in Metro Manila (National Capital Region), Philippines established in 1993. It is primarily held during the second semester of a school around November until Febru ...

(since 1993) *

Filoil EcoOil Preseason Cup The Filoil EcoOil Preseason Cup (previously known as the Filoil Flying V Preseason Cup) is a pre-season collegiate basketball tournament in the Philippines. It is organized by Filoil EcoOil Sports. It gathers teams mainly from the University Athl ...

(since 2006) * Universities and Colleges Basketball League (since 2016) * Father Martin Cup (since 1994) ; Defunct *

(1938–81) * Metro Manila Tiong Lian Basketball Association (1971–2013)https://www.facebook.com/Metro-Manila-Tiong-Lian-Baskteball-Association-281680648556912 *

Philippine Basketball League The Philippine Basketball League (PBL) was a commercial semi-professional basketball league in the Philippines. The league was composed of several commercial teams with several collegiate and provincial stars. History The PBL was formed on Ma ...

(1983–2011) *

Metropolitan Basketball Association The Metropolitan Basketball Association (MBA), or Metroball, was a professional basketball league in the Philippines that ran from March 7, 1998, to July 26, 2002. History The MBA played its first game on March 7, 1998, at the Don Narciso Ramos ...

(1998–2002) *

Mindanao Visayas Basketball Association The Mindanao Visayas Basketball Association (MVBA) was a community-based amateur commercial basketball league in Southern Philippines sanctioned by the country's National Sports Association for basketball, the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP). ...

(2006–08) * United Regional Basketball League (2004–05) *

National Basketball Conference The National Basketball Conference was a regional-based basketball league in the Philippines formed in 2004. The league is sanctioned by the Philippine national sport association for basketball, the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas. Teams are also ...

(2004–08) *

Liga Pilipinas Liga Pilipinas was a regional basketball league in the Philippines. It was sanctioned by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas, the country's national basketball federation, and owned by Pinoy Basketbol, Inc. History The National Basketball C ...

(2008–11) *

Pilipinas Commercial Basketball League Pilipinas Commercial Basketball League (also known as PCBL) was a commercial amateur basketball tournament based in the Philippines that catered to the development and grassroots program for future Filipino basketball players, inspired from the ...

(2015–16) *

Filsports Basketball Association Filsports Basketball Association (FBA) was a regional grassroots amateur basketball league based in the Philippines, aiming to discover young and talented basketball players from the provinces and regions. Formed in January 2015, by a group of b ...

(2015–16) * Community Basketball Association (CBA-Pilipinas) (2019)

Women's

; Professional * Women's National Basketball League (since 2019) ; Defunct * Pinay Ballers League

3x3

* Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3x3 (since 2019) *

PBA 3x3 PBA 3x3 refers to the men's 3x3 basketball league of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). History The proposal to form PBA 3x3, a men's 3x3 basketball league, was a result of a joint partnership between the Philippine Basketball Assoc ...

(since 2021)

Publications

XVII Intercontinental Cup – Girona/Barcelona 1985
*Bocobo, Christian and Celis, Beth, Legends and Heroes of Philippine Basketball, (Philippines, 2004) *Dela Cruz, Juan, Book of Pinoy Facts and Records, (National Bookstore, Mandaluyong, Philippines, 2004) *Philippine Basketball Association, The First 25 Years, (Philippines, 2000)

References

External links

Official Website of the Philippine Basketball Association

Girls Basketball in Dagupan City 1910 Post Card
{{Philippines topics