In tribute to Coach Baby Dalupan, The STAR has gathered exclusive quotes from the Maestro in our interview with him in 2014. When asked why he decided to become a coach early on, he paused and dug up a memory from 80 years ago.
“I was not a stand out player,” he said. “But I easily could understand how to make the players understand.”
Dalupan was also the coach of Crispa in the MICAA, the last team to jump onboard the new Philippine Basketball Association in 1975.
“The reason is we were in a commercial league and we were under the Basketball Association of the Philippines,” he explained. “And what happened is that when they made the national team, they picked out the candidates for the team and they did not allow them to play for their MICAA team. That made the board members of the MICAA angry. They decided that what will happen to our tournament if candidates will not be allowed to play for their team. So what they did was, let’s put up our own professional league so we will not be under the BAP. That’s how it started.”
The existing following of the MICAA gave the new professional league a boost, audience-wise.
“From the commercial league, it brought a lot of fans to see the new professional league here in the Philippines,” Dalupan adds. “And it so happens that the ruling is quite lenient, you know, “no harm, no foul”. And that made the game very exciting. So you can bump each other and there’s no call.”
Even with the rougher style of play back then, and the blending of older commercial players with young college standouts, Coach Baby was able to form cohesive, talented Redmanizer squads that dominated the opposition. He treated his players like his brothers and children, going out with them after games, and giving them advice about life.
“I was able to still discipline the players and, and I was very lucky because, then, I was given the full hand in handling the team.”
Even back then, Dalupan could see how far the PBA was going to grow.
“Basketball is our national sport,” he acknowledged. “It’s very exciting because everybody moves around and especially after having this new ruling that you have to shoot the ball after 24 seconds. It became very exciting and as I said, because you are allowed “no harm, no foul” it became more exciting for the audience to see the players really rally each other very closely.”
Dalupan also cherished being in the PBA Hall of Fame, realizing that his coaching was being appreciated. He also flashed back to opening night in 1977, when Crispa came from behind to defeat Toyota, and both teams figured in a free-for-all in the tunnel to the locker rooms.
“There’s a free-for-all that happened, and both teams were called by the military and they were all given a sermon and players were brought to Fort Bonifacio. They were kept there, so the wives had to bring their things to their husbands, our players. But just one night. It was for both teams, ha. For both teams.”
Looking back, Coach Baby could not suppress his gratitude for God and the school he called home.
“I owe it to my alma mater. I owe it to Ateneo. I owe it to our Lord, because I used to go to Baclaran and make my novena, early part of coaching the varsity team. That really helps me, I believe, that helped me in my successful career as a coach.”