Danny Ildefonso

Danny Ildefonso

No. 10 – Petron Blaze Boosters
Position	Forward-Center
League	PBA
Personal information
Born	(1976-12-09) December 9, 1976 Urdaneta, Pangasinan, Philippines
Nationality	Philippines
Listed height	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight	210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
College	National University (Philippines)
PBA draft	1998: 1st round, 1st overall pick
Selected by the Formula Shell
Playing career	1998–present
Career highlights and awards
8-Time PBA Champion (1999 Commissioner's & Governor's, 2000 Commissioner's & Governor's, 2001 All Filipino, 2004-2005 Fiesta, 2009 Fiesta, 2011 Governors) 8-Time PBA All-Star (1999-2001, 2003-2005, 2007, 2009) 1998 PBA Rookie of the Year 1998 PBA Mythical Second Team 1999 PBA Governor's Cup Finals Most Valuable Player 1999 PBA Mythical Second Team 2000 PBA Most Valuable Player 2000 PBA Mythical First Team 2000 PBA Commissioner's Cup Best Player of the Conference 2000 PBA Governor's Cup Best Player of the Conference 2000 PBA Commissioner's Cup Finals Most Valuable Player 2001 PBA Most Valuable Player 2001 PBA Mythical First Team 2001 PBA All-Filipino Cup Best Player of the Conference 2001 PBA Commissioner's Cup Best Player of the Conference 2001 PBA Governor's Cup Best Player of the Conference 2001 PBA All-Star Most Valuable Player 2005 PBA Fiesta Conference Finals Most Valuable Player 2006-07 PBA Mythical Second Team 2010-11 PBA Comeback Player of the Year

Danilo Ildefonso (born December 9, 1976 in Urdaneta, Pangasinan) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the Petron Blaze Boosters in the Philippine Basketball Association. Nicknamed Danny I and The Demolition Man, Ildefonso is a two-time PBA Most Valuable Player in 2000 and 2001 and is one of the three players to win the said award on back-to-back seasons, along with Bogs Adornado and Alvin Patrimonio. He also one of the few PBA players to have won all three major MVP awards in the league: regular season, finals, and all-star game MVP.

He played amateur basketball for the National University Bulldogs in the UAAP and for AGFA in the Philippine Basketball League and a member of the Philippine national basketball team on separate occasions.

Amateur career

Ildefonso was discovered after suiting up for his native Pangasinan in the Palarong Pambansa. He played for the NU Bulldogs in the UAAP, teaming up with fellow Pangasinense and later-AGFA and San Miguel teammate Lordy Tugade, leading the Bulldogs to respectable finishes in the UAAP. He later played for AGFA in the Philippine Basketball League but had a difficult time leading the Photokina franchise to the title, losing to Tanduay in championship matches. He was regarded as the second-best big man of his class behind Rommel Adducul, and was highly sought after by then-SMB coach Ron Jacobs after seeing the potential in his rail-thin frame. The tremendous potential seen in his combination of youth, footwork, leaping ability and work ethic as shown by him bulking up after only two seasons in the PBA were enough to convince San MIguel to trade their number two pick, Noy Castillo, and cash for the No.1 pick Ildefonso. Ildefonso was also involved in some controversy after signing with the now-defunct Pangasinan Presidents of the MBA, having a live contract with AGFA and at the same time being selected in the draft. San Miguel had to buy out all his contractual obligations for him to suit up with the Beermen.

Ildefonso led the Philippines to a gold-medal in 1997 Southeast Asian Games alongside Rommel Adducul and Ralph Rivera.

PBA career

Early years

After a successful amateur career, Danny Ildefonso applied for the PBA draft despite being underage. This prompted the PBA to change their age limit rules, enraging the PBL. Even as Ildefonso entered the draft, he also signed a contract to play for the Pangasinan Presidents of the newly formed Metropolitan Basketball Association.

Ildefonso was eventually drafted first-pick overall by Formula Shell in the 1998 PBA Draft, but was traded to San Miguel for the Beermen's second overall pick, Noy Castillo, and cash. The San Miguel Corporation franchise wanted the promising youngster in their ranks to be the future cornerstone of the team and this forced them to buy out his MBA contract.

In his rookie season, Ildefonso became one of the key players for the Beermen alongside Nelson Asaytono, leading the Beermen to two runner-up finish in the All-Filipino and Commissioner's Cup, losing to Alaska on both occasions. At season's end, he won the Rookie of the Year honors while averaging 11.6 PPG in 74 Games which leads all Rookies in 1998.

The next season, with the departure of Asaytono and the arrival of Filipino-American rookie Danny Seigle and the performances of imports Terquin Mott and Lamont Strothers, San Miguel won two titles in the 1999 Commissioner's Cup and Governor's Cup, ending a five-year title drought.

Back-to-Back MVP Awards

In 2000, Ildefonso and Seigle would again lead San Miguel to two titles, retaining the Commissioner's and Governor's Cup championships. Ildefonso won the two of the five straight Best Player of the Conference honors and defeated Seigle to win the Most Valuable Player Awards.

In 2001, San Miguel defeated sister team Barangay Ginebra Kings, 4-2 to win the All-Filipino Cup. Despite two losses to Red Bull and Sta. Lucia in the Commissioner's Cup and Governor's Cup finals series, Ildefonso went on to sweep the Best Player of the Conference honors and won his second Most Valuable Player Award, joining Bogs Adornado and Alvin Patrimonio as the only players to win the said award on back-to-back seasons. He also won the All-Star Game MVP honors for the victorious Veterans team. With this feature, Danny Ildefonso became one of the rare players to have won all three major MVP awards in the league: regular season, finals, and all-star game MVP.

Struggles

In 2002, Ildefonso temporary left San Miguel to join the Philippine National Training Pool in the preparation for the 2002 Asian Games in Busan. Ildefonso went on to join the team for the event but struggled throughout the Asiad, mainly due to his role of playing small forward, instead of his natural position of power forward. The Nationals ended up in fourth place after losing a heartbreaking semis matchup against South Korea. Ildefonso returned to the Beermen in the All-Filipino Cup but the Beermen placed only third in the said tournament.

Ildefonso would play inconsistent games as well as missing several games due to injuries in the 2003 season and the early parts of the 2004-05 season.

2005 Fiesta Conference Finals MVP

During the 2005 Fiesta Conference, the Beermen made it to the semifinals against Red Bull. Ildefonso played one of his best games of the tournament, and hit numerous clutch shots in the tournament, including a series-clinching game-winning fade away over the outstretched arms of Red Bull import Earl Barron to lead San Miguel to the finals against the Talk 'N Text Phone Pals.

In the championship series, Ildefonso again played another impressive performance for San Miguel, leading them to their first title since 2001 and defeating the Phone Pals, 4-1. During the series, Ildefonso made a game-winning layup in game 2 against Asi Taulava and in Game 5, a running jumper that put San Miguel in the lead for good to clinch the series. Ildefonso was named Finals MVP.

Ildefonso was fined 5,000 pesos by the league after two technical fouls during Game 3 of the 2006-07 Philippine Cup semis. After a first technical foul after a verbal exchange with Mick Pennisi, he was ejected in the fourth quarter during a face-to-face verbal exchange with Enrico Villanueva.

2008-2009 season

Bothered by injuries, Ildefonso missed much of the 2008-09 season. In April 2008, he was voted to play as a starter for the North squad in the PBA All-Star Game. However, the former two-time MVP did not play in the All Star Game, as PBA commissioner Sonny Barrios accepted his request to be with his six-year-old daughter who was scheduled for chemotherapy treatment on the same day.

2011 PBA Governor's Cup

The Petron Blaze Boosters reached the PBA finals this conference after a bad record last conference. He hit a game winning shot in Game 1 against Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters in a come from behind winning score of 89-88. Despite having injuries to four key players, Petron Blaze Boosters defeated the heavily favored Talk and Text for the Governor's Cup Championship, slamming the Texter's bid for a grandslam. His effectiveness and contribution earned him the Comeback Player award last season.

2011-2012 season

On January 11, 2012, in a game against the Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters, Ildefonso scored a season high 22 points after going 11 of 14 from the field, including a baseline spinner that gave them a 81-80 lead entering the final two minutes. Petron ultimately defeated Talk N' Text 85-82, to take a 3-1 lead in the semifinals of the Philippine Cup. Although Petron lost the series 4-3, the former two time MVP still played an important role for his team.

PBA career statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

Correct as of January 13, 2013

Regular Season

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1998	San Miguel	74	32.8	.497	.222	.700	5.0	1.6	.2	1.0	11.7
1999	San Miguel	55	41.7	.481	.125	.725	8.8	2.0	.5	1.2	12.9
2000	San Miguel	55	38.8	.482	.154	.744	8.8	3.2	.4	.8	15.2
2001	San Miguel	70	42.2	.433	.222	.675	8.6	4.5	.7	.9	14.7
2002	San Miguel	12	35.3	.472	.417	.639	7.8	4.2	.5	.5	12.3
2003	San Miguel	36	29.8	.470	.250	.715	6.4	2.4	1.0	1.1	13.0
2004–05	San Miguel	65	29.9	.479	.143	.660	7.0	2.4	1.0	.7	12.7
2005–06	San Miguel	44	32.4	.434	.250	.656	6.4	3.1	.6	.8	12.1
2006–07	San Miguel	48	28.0	.475	.000	.651	6.6	2.3	.7	.7	12.4
2007–08	Magnolia	40	25.2	.452	.158	.690	4.8	1.9	.9	.5	9.7
2008–09	San Miguel	19	21.6	.436	.000	.642	4.5	1.4	.5	.3	10.4
2009–10	San Miguel	39	17.0	.449	.500	.673	3.2	1.0	.3	.4	6.9
2010–11	San Miguel/Petron Blaze	48	23.2	.508	.143	.549	4.9	2.3	.6	.5	7.5
2011–12	Petron Blaze	40	22.4	.488	.154	.524	5.1	2.1	.7	.6	8.1
2012–13	Petron Blaze	7	9.3	.368	.000	.000	2.0	0.3	.1	.9	2.0
Career		652	31.0	.468	.203	.676	6.4	2.4	0.6	0.7	11.6

Life Story

Ildefonso's early struggles with poverty during his younger years while living on a farm with his parents and his rise from being a mediocre college player to becoming a college and amateur league superstar and eventually becoming the no.1 draft pick and the youngest player ever drafted in the PBA was shown on Maalaala Mo Kaya on ABS-CBN in 2004. Versatile actor Victor Neri portrayed him.

External links

• PBA.ph