Barako: Short in talent but holds longest PBA moniker

The Barako Energy Coffee Masters may appear short talent-wise on paper, but the team carries the longest team moniker, probably the longest in the Philippine Basketball Association’s 35-year-old history. "It could be the longest team moniker ever," PBA head of statistics Fidel Mangonon, the pro league’s notable trivia man, wrote in his Twitter account.

The Energy Coffee Masters have 19 letters compared to the 14 each by the Elasto Painters (Rain or Shine) and Tropang Texters (Talk ‘N Text), and the eight by the Gin Kings (Barangay Ginebra). Derby Ace and Sta. Lucia have seven letters with their team monikers, Llamados and Realtors while San Miguel (Beermen) and Air21 (Express) have six each. Coca-Cola and Alaska have the shortest with five (Tigers) and four (Aces). Here’s a bit of trivia, can you recall other teams past and present that have long monikers? The 1985 Northern Consolidated national team, the first guest squad to win a PBA title and the first team to complete a sweep of the best-of-seven series over Manila Beer, had the longest team nickname at that time when they competed as the Cement Nationals (15) American mentor Ron Jacobs handled that squad composed mostly of outstanding amateur players such as Samboy Lim, Allan Caidic, Hector Calma and three naturalized players in Arthur "Chip" Engelland, Jeff Moore and Dennis Still. The Cement Nationals created a big stir in the pro league more than just their long team moniker but their brand new style that endeared them to the fans. Even Manila Beer carried a long team moniker at that time when they competed as the Brew Masters (11). Long monikers not new after all It turned out the long moniker is nothing new in Asia first play-for-pay league. The legendary Crispa squad of the late great Danny Floro and "The Maestro" Baby Dalupan was known as the Redmanizers with 11 letters. The franchise created one of the early PBA dynasties as it won 13 championships with two grandslams and is highly considered as the best team ever. In the old Manila Industrial Commercial Athletic Association (MICAA), Crispa even carried a longer moniker when they were known as the Floro Redmanizers, 16 letters. Crispa’s archrival, Toyota, caught everyone’s fancy not just because of its glamour squad but also its long moniker. From Comets to Tamaraws, Toyota changed its moniker to the Corollas. Then, in 1982 and 1983 seasons, they changed their team name to Super Corollas (13) and Silver Corollas (14) before disbanding at the end of the 1983 season. PBA historians Atty. Percival Flores and Jay P. Mercado of MYPBA.com, shared to GMANews.TV their own lists of teams with long monikers. "Mariwasa carried Mariwasa-Noritake before. The team was managed by Nikki Coseteng, whose father, Emerson is the founding president of the PBA," said Mercado. "And their moniker is a bit long, too. The squad is known as the Porcelain Makers (15)." Atty. Flores could think of several teams, but was convinced that Countryfair Hotdogs and Carrier Air-Condition are two of the teams that played in the PBA with long monikers. "When the league started in 1975, Carrier Air-Condition carried a long team moniker. And they were known as the Weather Makers (13). Then, in 1983, Countryfair Hotdogs were known as the Ziggy Diggies (12)," said Atty. Flores. From Barako Bull to Barako Energy Coffee The Energy Food and Drinks Inc. hope its name change would help them regain its winning tradition. Barako Bull, with a new head coach and a slew of new player acquisitions, will also have a brand new name in Barako Energy Coffee. "With the changes we’ve had, we look forward to a highly competitive campaign in the coming PBA tourney," said team owner George Chua. "We’re raring to improve on our poor showing in the recent Philippine Cup, determined to make good on the playing court and make an impact for the brand Barako Energy Coffee which we’re introducing to the public," Chua added. Coach Junel Baculi will call the shots for the team featuring new recruits Jerwin Gaco, Rob Wainwright, Al Vergara and Christian Coronel and old reliables Yousif Aljamal, Rob Reyes, Gilbert Lao, Jojo Duncil, Aris Dimaunahan, Leo Najorda, Ogie Menor, Chad Alonzo and Bryan Faundo. The team will be reinforced by Sammy Monroe, a 6-foot-5 forward out of Newberry U with a recent stint with the Austin Toros in the NBA Developmental League. At the moment, only Raymond Celis is listed as assistant coach. The team is expected to name at least one more assistant coach in the next few days. Leo Isaac has been elevated to team consultant while Jay Llanos Dee remains as team manager and Dr. John Lim as team physician. The team moniker has also been changed from Energy Boosters to Energy Coffee Masters, with the players vowing to live up to their chosen nickname. "We assure the PBA fans that our team will come out and give its best effort in each game we play. We intend to relive our winning tradition," said Raffy Casiao, the team’s alternate representative to the PBA board. The team joined the league as an expansion franchise in 2000 and has since won three championships. Through the 2008-09 season, the team had a .536 winning performance (247-214 win-loss record), better than the records of Coca-Cola (.504), Purefoods (.500), Ginebra (.482), Talk ‘N Text (.469), Burger King (.469), Sta. Lucia (.455) and Rain or Shine (.314). Then known as the Red Bull Barakos, the team – only in its second year in the pro league – won the 2001 Commissioner’s Cup under Yeng Guiao. – Rey Joble, GMANews.TV