Video by INQUIRER.net’s Ryan Leagogo
MANILA, Philippines—It was the night for the men who stood above the rest, and the team that made the grandest of slams.
Honoring the players, the coach and the man who made the 39th season of the Philippine Basketball Association a season for the annals, the PBA Press Corps gave out their hardware Thursday evening at the Richmond Hotel in Eastwood.
As the coach of the San Mig Super Coffee Mixers, the fourth team to win the Grand Slam, Tim Cone was the consensus Baby Dalupan Coach of the Year.
For Cone, winning his third Coach of the Year award was a long time coming.
He last won the award in 1996, the year he won the league’s Grand Slam for Alaska.
Branded as one of the best coaches in history, Cone said that he is still humbled to be in the same group as the greatest architects of the game.
“In my room I have a picture that has me, coach Baby (Dalupan), coach Tommy (Manotoc) and coach Norman (Black),” Cone said.
Time Cone and Ramon Ang. RYAN LEAGOGO/INQUIRER.net
San Mig’s chief architect was honored with the fact that he shares the trophy space with the name of coach Dalupan, the first coach to win the Grand Slam leading the Crispa Redmanizers in 1976.
“I want to thank coach Baby, the fact that his name is on this trophy is so honorable for me,” Cone said.
Despite the award, he said the Grand Slam still sent shivers in his spine.
“Winning a Grand Slam is the thrill of all thrills,” Cone said.
In a message, the man that Cone eclipsed as the league’s winningest coach, Dalupan, had just one simple thing to say.
“I knew Tim was going to win the Grand Slam,” Dalupan said in a message.
PBA Commissioner Chito Salud said the Super Coffee Mixers are part of Philippine basketball history’s greatest.
“Part of the biggest story of Philippine basketball history,” Salud said.
Apart from Cone, another man from the San Miguel franchise was awarded with a hardware.
San Miguel chairman Ramon Ang was awarded with the Danny Floro Executive of the Year.
Ang said that if there’s a man responsible for the Grand Slam, it was Cone.
“Tim, you’re the best coach I’ve seen in my life,” Ang said. “You have brought glory for the SMC.”
“I hope you win another Grand Slam,” he added.
Also part of the awards night were the Press Corps’ top rookies with Rookie of the Year Greg Slaughter leading the way.
Joining Slaughter were San Mig’s Ian Sangalang and Justin Melton, Rain or Shine’s Raymond Almazan and Globalport’s Terrence Romeo.
Air 21’s seasoned big man Asi Taulava won the Comeback Player after the 41-year-old posted 14.7 points per game.
PBA’s top gunner was Jayson Castro after Asia’s best point guard posted an average of 16.7 ppg.
Showing force not only in the Grand Slam, three San Mig players won individual awards.
San Mig’s do-it-all workhorse Marc Pingris won his third Defensive Player of the Year.
Scoring Apostle Peter June Simon bagged the Mr. Quality Minutes award and Mark Barroca won the Order of Merit award.