ALAB Pilipinas etched its name in Philippine basketball when it won a championship in the Asean Basketball League, reinforcing the country’s status as the best in the region.
It happened during the 2017-2018 season of the Southeast Asian basketball league where Alab captured the crown through the full five games of the series, beating Mono Vampire, 102-92, on May 2, 2018, at the Sta. Rosa Multi-Purpose Complex.
Alab disbanded after ABL shut down
Alab’s run ended during the pandemic when the ABL shut down its 2020 season, but it was one memorable time for team owner Charlie Dy.
“Special siya dahil nakaka-proud na you are representing the Philippines. At sa overseas, marami kang napapasaya na mga OFW,” said Dy in a recent interview to recall his time with Alab.
The current VPGlobal Management chief said he made sure he was hands-on with the affairs of Alab when it entered the ABL.
“Tumutok ako sa Alab because we were representing the Philippines,” said Dy. “It was a tall order especially after the first season na nag-struggle kami at naglakas loob akong sabihin na we are coming back.”
The first season was respectable for Alab, reaching the semifinals during the 2016-2017 campaign before losing to the Singapore Slingers in a sweep, but Dy wanted the team to become better.
Alab taps Alapag as head coach
After the first year, Alab management decided to beef up, bringing in Jimmy Alapag for his first head coaching job, the person who would eventually become the guiding force of the team throughout the season. Alab also retained Ray Parks for another season and got a major sponsor in San Miguel Corp. midway through the season.
“True enough, when we got Jimmy, it opened doors for him. We are happy for him na it jumpstarted his coaching career, napag-champion niya in the first season,” said Dy.
“Mahirap talaga ‘yung traveling and siyempre, you have to find the right people,” he added.
Two more people indeed became the right pieces to the team, taking in Justin Brownlee and Renaldo Balkman midway through the season. Brownlee and Balkman were coming off PBA stints, but Balkman was sanctioned with a lifetime suspension for grabbing the neck of then-Petron teammate Arwind Santos during a game.
It marked the first time Brownlee represented the Philippines since arriving in the country as Barangay Ginebra's import in 2016.
Dy said Brownlee and Balkman being imports of Alab wouldn’t be possible without the intercession of their late agent Sheryl Reyes, but their love for the Philippines was also a big reason why they agreed to join the team, albeit a slash in their respective salaries.
“Nung nag-struggle kami, luckily, si Sheryl, ang laki ng naitulong niya talaga. Alam naman natin na sa ABL, limited ang budget, may salary cap. Since hawak niya si Brownlee at Balkman, napakiusapan ko talaga na tumulong sila dito,” said Dy.
“They love the Philippines that they agreed to take a pay cut. Talagang siguro one-third lang ang suweldo nila na kaya naming i-offer. But they gave their best and gave Jimmy his championship in the ABL for the Philippines,” he recalled.
Looking back at his time handling Alab, Dy is happy that Alab became the avenue for Alapag to make it big in coaching, being a player development coach of the Sacramento Kings.
“I’m really super proud. Up to now, we are in contact. Actually, ‘yung mga affairs niya sa Philippines, ako ang naghahandle. Siyempre, I’m not NBA-licensed so hindi ko siya ma-handle sa NBA. But we are super proud of him because he is in the main team of the Sacramento Kings. Proud kami and nakita mo naman how proud he is being a Filipino,” said Dy.
Dy also said Brownlee deserves his spot as the naturalized player of Gilas Pilipinas, seeing how he loved the country during his time with Alab.
“Kaya nga sobrang happy ako na si Justin ‘yung naturalized player ngayon sa Gilas kasi pusong Pinoy. Pinoy na Pinoy,” said Dy.
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