Happy Birthday, Rodolfo Jose "Bong" Abad ( Dec 30 )

Happy Birthday, Rodolfo Jose "Bong" Abad

1993 PBA Rookie Draft 15th overall pick
Southwestern University Cobras guard
1-season PBA veteran
San Miguel Beermen draftee

Source : Assorted Magazines (PBA Archives Collections)

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RODOLFO ABAD JR.
Born December 30, 1966 Barile, Cebu 183 cms., 83.9 kgs. Guard. Drafted on the second round by San Miguel, Bong Abad did not make it to the regular roster of the Beermen at the opening of the season. Instead, he wound up playing for San Miguel's amateur team, Instafood in the PBL. When Hector Calma got injured during the Commissioner's Cup, he was tapped to fill the vacancy. But he was lost in the shuffle of men by coach Norman Black who went to his tried and tested warriors instead of experimenting on a rookie. Nevertheless, Bong proved he is a scorer by averaging 4.3 points in six games with a single high of ten in a total of 31 minutes. With Calma returning to active duty, Abad will certainly be displaced.  Bong hails from Tungao Butuan City. He is the third of six kids (Ruel, Ronnie, Bong, Rachel, Roseanne and Rhea) of Rodolfo Sr. and the former Wilfreda Amoroso. His father is an engineer at the ALCO Anatan Lumber while his mother is a midwife. He started playing in intramurals while a high school student at the Christ the King College. And then he played two years with the Liceo de Cagayan where he took up accounting. After earning a degree, he transferred to Southwestern University where his skills were further enhanced by coach Bobby Inoferio. In 1990, he was recruited by Mama's Love and he gave Manila cage buffs a sample of what he can do in the PBL. After Manalili resigned as coach, Willie Generalao took over. Generalao was assisted by Bernie Fabiosa on the Casino. Alcohol bench. "Kay Bobby ay natutuhan ko ang basic ng basketball," he said. "Kay Manalili, naging defensive player ako. Pero sina coach Willie at Bernie talaga ang nagturo sa akin kung paano maging point guard. Sabi nila, sa height ko kailangang guwardia ang laruin ko. Hindi puwedeng forward dahil hindi ako makukuha sa PBA. Dati kasi pure shooter lang ako." Bong heeded the advise of Generalao and Fabiosa and finally decided to apply for pro status this year. "Maraming nagsasabing hindi pa raw ako dapat na mag-pro. I myself wanted to play for the national team first. Kaya lang. parang wala nang tsansang makasama pa ako sa RP team kaya itinuloy ko na lang ang pagpo-pro," he said. He was already in Cebu City biding his time when Black called him up asking whether he was still interested to play for San Miguel. "Siyempre, natuwa ako. Pero hindi ako satisfied sa playing time ko. Naiintindihan ko naman kung bakit. Marami ako'ng kalaban sa puwesto. But I'm willing to learn. Okay naman ang mga kakampi ko dahil tinuturuan din nila ako," he said. Of course, he feels bad that the Beermen failed to advance to the best-of-seven championship round and were relegated to the best-of-five battle for third place with Shell. If he fails to find his place under the PBA sun, Bong says he'll enroll in a review class and later take the board exam for certified public accountants. "At least, I still have something to fall back on," he said. But of course, that's being pessimistic. Bong Abad's got tremendous potential. Norman Black won't allow such talent go to waste.