This article is about the original Crispa basketball team (1956-1984). For the amateur teams that played in the MICAA (1977-1981) and the PBL (1989-1992), see Crispa 400. For the shirt brand, see Crispa (clothing brand).
The Crispa Redmanizers were a multi-titled Filipino basketball team that played in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) from 1975 to 1984. It was one of the nine founding teams of the PBA, winning a total of thirteen PBA championships, including two grand slams. Founded in 1956 by businessman Valeriano "Danny" Floro, the team was owned by P. Floro and Sons, Inc. (defunct).
Named after the retail store and textile manufacturing company owned by the Floro family, the Redmanizers were managed by sportsman Danny Floro and coached for many years by the legendary Virgilio "Baby" Dalupan.
The Redmanizer moniker was a reference to the Redmanization process used in Crispa's textile manufacturing to make the cloth dimensionally stable and more resilient to unwanted shrinking after washing.[1] Crispa's garment and textile products were marketed as "Redmanized", "shrunk-to-fit".[citation needed]
Crispa won 13 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) championships in a span of nine years. Even more amazing is that the Crispa's roster during the PBA inaugural in 1975 had five future Most Valuable Player awardees. In hindsight, this was not a mere championship team; it was an all-star team.
In 1973, authorities discovered that six of the team's players had conspired with gamblers to drop the 1972 MICAA All-Filipino championship series against underdog Mariwasa. These six players, including four of the five starters (only Adornado was found innocent among the starting five), were served lifetime suspensions. With its lineup depleted, manager Valeriano "Danny" Floro and coach Virgilio "Baby" Dalupan were forced to rebuild. They opted to go with younger players, bringing in Mapúa Institute of Technology hotshot Fortunato "Atoy" Co, Jr. and Colegio de San Jose Recoletos standout Abet Guidaben in 1973, and Jose Rizal College’s Philip Cezar and RP Youth Team players Bernie Fabiosa and Alfredo "Freddie" Hubalde in 1974.
In 1974, Crispa began a rivalry for basketball supremacy with Toyota – a team spearheaded by Robert Jaworski, Francis Arnaiz, and Ramon Fernandez, stars of the old Meralco franchise. Nothing came close to the Crispa-Toyota Rivalry. The two teams really hated each other and would rather lose to other teams than to each other. It was not uncommon to have games marred by bench clearing brawls. The two teams also had very different personalities with the fair haired and fair skinned Toyota players appealing more to the upper crust of Philippine society whereas the Redmanizers were perceived to be the team of the masses.
Toyota won the first two PBA conferences in 1975, beating Crispa both times. Crispa finally sneaked in and clinched the Third Conference in a battle so fierce it got marred by a free-for-all. Once the Redmanizers got a taste of the championship, however, they simply did not let go. They won all three conferences in 1976, being the first PBA team to win a "grand slam". They won another two championships in 1977, despite the loss of leading scorer and reigning MVP Adornado to a knee injury at the start of the year.
From 1978 to 1982, however, Crispa went into a title slump. They won no championships in 1978, only the All-Filipino championships in 1979 to 1981, and were blanked once again in 1982. Three conference championships in five years may be good enough for most teams, but not for the powerful Redmanizers.
The team rectified the situation by dissolving the Floro-Dalupan partnership and bringing in former U/Tex coach and presidentFerdinand Marcos' son-in-law Tomas "Tommy" Manotoc to serve as coach. The team also got an infusion of young talent as amateur standouts Arturo "Bay" Cristobal, Elpidio "Yoyoy" Villamin, Padim Israel, and Mon Cruz became the newest Redmanizers. To top it all off, Crispa hired import Billy Ray Bates to augment an already awesome cast. The Redmanizers proceeded to dominate the competition, sweeping all three conference championships in 1983, another grand slam.
Crispa's 1983 grand slam campaign, however, could not prevent the inevitable break-up of the team. Arch-rival Toyota had already disbanded prior to the start of the 1984 season as the political and economic turmoil following the assassination of opposition stalwart Senator Ninoy Aquino made it increasingly difficult for companies to finance professional basketball teams. Crispa won the first conference All-Filipino title for a total of 13 franchise titles but played poorly in the remainder of 1984 campaign. On February 1, 1985, PBA Commissioner Mariano Yenko announced the sale of Crispa's PBA franchise to Pilipinas Shell. The sports pages of the day read out the sad and anticlimactic manner by which the legendary team was dismantled.
The Crispa-Toyota rivalry was between the now-defunct PBA teams — the Crispa Redmanizers and the Toyota Tamaraws. The two teams dominated the PBA from 1975 to 1983, winning 21 out of the possible 26 PBA titles of those seasons. Such was their popularity that whenever these two teams met on the basketball court, the streets of Metro Manila and in the Philippine provinces would be virtually deserted, as most people, especially the PBA fans, would be focused on their TV and radio sets, watching or listening to the coverage of the game.
The Toyota Super Corollas were a multi-titled basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) from 1975 to 1983. Founded in 1973 by businessman and sportsman Dante Silverio, the team - formally named Toyota Athletic Club - was owned by Delta Motor Corporation (defunct) and played under various names - Komatsu Komets, Toyota Comets, Toyota Silver Tamaraws, Toyota Tamaraws, Toyota Superdiesels, Toyota Super Corollas and Toyota Silver Coronas.
In the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), the Grand Slam is the achievement of winning all three conference championships (tournaments) in a single season. As of 2020, this has been accomplished five times by four teams and four coaches since the league's inception in 1975.
Alberto "Abet" Guidaben is a Filipino former professional basketball player in the PBA. He was part of the fabled Crispa Redmanizers ballclub that won two Grand Slams, in 1976 and 1983. He was a two-time PBA Most Valuable Player awardee in 1983 and 1987.
The 1975 PBA season was the inaugural season of the Philippine Basketball Association.
The 1976 PBA season was the second season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1979 PBA season was the fifth season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1980 PBA season was the sixth season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1982 PBA season was the eighth season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1983 PBA season was the 9th season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The U/Tex Wranglers were a professional basketball team and one of the pioneers of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) in its maiden season in 1975.
The Great Taste Coffee Makers were a basketball team that played in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) from 1975 to 1992. It was one of the founding members of the PBA, the Asia's first and oldest professional league. The franchise was owned by CFC Corporation and named after its brand of instant coffee, Great Taste Coffee. The franchise also played under other CFC brands such as N-Rich, Presto and Tivoli.
William "Bogs" Adornado is a Filipino professional basketball coach and former player. He is one of the Philippine Basketball Association's Greatest Players and was inducted to its Hall of Fame in 2005. He was a three-time PBA Most Valuable Player and is considered one of the best Filipino basketball players of all time.
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 companies.
Virgilio "Baby" Adam Dalupan was a Filipino basketball coach and player. Dubbed "The Maestro", Dalupan was best known for his lengthy coaching tenure with the Crispa Redmanizers and garnered a career total of 52 basketball championships.
Fortunato "Fort" Acuña was a Filipino professional basketball player and coach.
The 1975 PBA Second Conference finals was the best-of-5 basketball championship series of the 1975 PBA Second Conference, and the conclusion of the conference's playoffs. The Toyota Comets and the Crispa Redmanizers played for the second championship contested by the league.
The 1975 Crispa Redmanizers season was the maiden season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
Crispa 400 was the name of two amateur basketball teams owned by P. Floro and Sons, Inc. that played in the Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association (MICAA) from 1977 to 1981 and the Philippine Basketball League (PBL) from 1989 to 1992, respectively. The name Crispa 400 refers to a line of T-shirts manufactured by the Floro company.
The 1977 Crispa Redmanizers season was the third season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
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