2002 PBA season
| 2002 PBA season | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Duration | February 10, 2002 – December 25, 2002 |
| Number of teams | 10 |
| TV partner(s) | Viva TV (IBC) |
| 2002 PBA Draft | |
| Top draft pick | Yancy de Ocampo |
| Picked by | FedEx Express |
| Season MVP | Willie Miller |
| Governors Cup champions | Purefoods TJ Hotdogs |
| Commissioner's Cup champions | Batang Red Bull Thunder |
| All-Filipino Cup champions | Coca-Cola Tigers |
The 2002 PBA season was the 28th season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
Board of governors
Executive committee
- Emilio Bernardino, Jr. (Commissioner)
- Francisco Alejo III (Chairman, Purefoods TJ Hotdogs)
- Casiano Cabalan Jr. (Vice-Chairman, Barangay Ginebra Kings)
- Angelito Alvarez (Treasurer, FedEx Express)
Teams
| Team | Company | Governor | Alternate Governor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Aces | Alaska Milk Corporation | Wilfred Steven Uytengsu | Joaquin Trillo |
| Barangay Ginebra Kings | La Tondeña Distillers, Inc. | Casiano Cabalan Jr. | Ira Daniel Maniquis |
| Coca Cola Tigers | Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines, Inc. | Jose Bayani Baylon | Emmanuel Puno |
| FedEx Express | Airfrieght 2100, Inc. | Angelito Alvarez | |
| Purefoods TJ Hotdogs | Purefoods Corporation | Francisco Alejo III | Elizier Capacio |
| Red Bull Thunder | Photokina Marketing Corporation | George Chua | Manuel Mendoza |
| Sta. Lucia Realtors | Sta. Lucia Realty and Development Corporation | Manuel Encarnado | Ariel Magno |
| San Miguel Beermen | San Miguel Brewery, Inc. | Alberto Malapit | |
| Shell Turbo Chargers | Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation | Roberto Kanapi | |
| Talk 'N Text Phone Pals | Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company | Victorino Vargas | Al Panlilio |
Notable occurrences
- The Tanduay Rhum Masters left the league after three seasons. Their franchise was taken over by the FedEx Express.
- Republic Flour Mills (RFM) sold its subsidiary COSMOS Bottlers Corporation to food company giant San Miguel Corporation. The move also absorbed the Pop Cola Panthers, which gave SMC four PBA ballclubs. After the PBA board gave the go-signal to allow the team to remain in the league, it was renamed as the Coca-Cola Tigers before the start of the 2002 season.
- The league revised its season calendar to accommodate the participation of its players for the upcoming 2002 Asian Games. The Governors' Cup became the first conference of the season while the All-Filipino became the third and final conference.
- The pool for the national team were divided into two teams: Selecta-RP and Happee-RP. Both teams participated for the Governors' Cup.
- Talk 'N Text coach Bill Bayno was fined PHP200,000 after publicly criticizing the league and its official.[1] This came after Bayno branded the league as "San Miguel Basketball Association" and charged the league officials are favoring the four SMC-owned teams (San Miguel Beermen, Barangay Ginebra Kings, Coca Cola Tigers and Purefoods TJ Hotdogs).[2]
- This was the last season in which the Commissioner's and Governors Cup were disputed. They were replaced in 2003 by the Invitational and Reinforced Conferences, and eventually the Fiesta Conference. Both conferences will return in 2010 after the league re-adopted the three conference season format.
Opening ceremonies
The muses for the participating teams are as follows:
Champions
- Governors Cup: Purefoods TJ Hotdogs
- Commissioner's Cup: Batang Red Bull Thunder
- All-Filipino Cup: Coca-Cola Tigers
- Team with best win-loss percentage: Coca-Cola (31–16, .660)
Individual awards
- Most Valuable Player: Willie Miller (Red Bull)
- Rookie of the Year: Ren-Ren Ritualo (FedEx)
- Sportsmanship Award: Paolo Mendoza (Sta. Lucia)
- Most Improved Player: Rob Duat (Alaska)
- Defensive Player of the Year: Davonn Harp (Red Bull)
- Mythical Five
- Willie Miller (Red Bull)
- Davonn Harp (Red Bull)
- Jeffrey Cariaso (Coca-Cola)
- Victor Pablo (Talk 'N Text)
- Don Allado (Alaska)
- Mythical Second Team
- Asi Taulava (Talk 'N Text)
- Gilbert Demape (Talk 'N Text)
- Nic Belasco (San Miguel)
- Kerby Raymundo (Purefoods)
- Rey Evangelista (Purefoods)
- All Defensive Team
- Davonn Harp (Red Bull)
- Chris Jackson (Shell)
- Rudy Hatfield (Coca-Cola)
- Jeffrey Cariaso (Coca-Cola)
- Rey Evangelista (Purefoods)
Awards given by the PBA Press Corps
- Coach of the Year: Ryan Gregorio (Purefoods)
- Mr. Quality Minutes: Ato Morano (Coca-Cola)
- Executive of the Year: George C. Chua (Red Bull)
- Comeback Player of the Year: Ronnie Magsanoc (Purefoods)
- Referee of the Year: Mario Montiel
References
- ^ Bayno fined a record P.2 for hitting PBA officiating by June Navarro, Philippine Daily Inquirer, August 14, 2002
- ^ Bernardino summons Bayno, by June Navarro, Philippine Daily Inquirer, August 13, 2002.
