Sports Flashback : The Untold Story of Bogs Adornado Part 1

Sports Event : The Untold Story of Bogs Adornado Part 1

Source : Champ Magazine dated October 1, 1981 and written by Philip Evardone

MEET William Adornado. The man, the lover, the super cager. As a man, you may not know him well; as a lover, he could even be more mysterious. But as a basketball player, you could probably recognize him immediately, even through his shadow, because of his immense popularity. Any man, woman, and child, born 17 years ago and beyond, should know him even by his name alone. Because for the last 10 years, William Adornado has been a prominent figure in the local basketball scene. In the history of the Philippine Basketball Associa tion, he is the first and only player who won the elusive Most Valuable Player award two times (1975 and 1976) when he was still the top gunner for the multi-titled Crispa Redmanizers. The year after he won his second MVP, he was sidelined because of a serious knee injury. But his absence did not stop people from talk. ing about him. He was "My talent is natural." missed but not forgotten. In the first conference of the 1978 season, he made his comeback. But the stigma of the knee operation and the fear of rehurting his knee hounded him always, forcing coach Baby Dalupan to use him sparingly throughout the season. It was one of the hardest stages of his playing career. "Recovering from the shock and all the psychological At 30, Bogs had undergone 5 operations. Despite that, he's still one of the country's highest paid ball players, earning between P10,000 to P15,000 a month. And watch out, he's looking for a bride. matters associated with the injury was the hardest thing for me to do," Adornado sid. "But little by little, I have learned to endure." 

WAS RELEASED IN 1980 
After the trying season 1978, Adornado asked Crispa team manager Danny Floro for his release papers. But Floro, after due consultations with Dalupan, decided to retain him. His playing contract was extended for four more years on his own request. The following year, he continued to play the role of a reserve until the time came when Dalupan finally decided to release him "for his own good" The release came in the early part of the 1980 first conference. In releasing Adornado, Dalupan said that it would be better for him "than keeping him with Crispa, a team that teems with super stars." It was just obvious that Adomado could no longer be given the playing time that he used to get from Crispa before his injury, During his absence, Alfredo Hubalde and Fortunato Co, Jr. were honed up to their sharpest forms. U-Tex, after getting Adornado, became a deadly force in the league. Mentored by Tommy Manotoc, the man who piloted the Wranglers to their first PBA title in 1978, U-Tex won the 1980 Open championship, the year Adornado donned the Wrangler jersey. It was clear that Adornado has become an instant hero in the U-Tex camp. He has regained his old fiery form, his confidence, and his old fighting will. In his first conference stint with the Wranglers, Adornado emerged as the top Filipino scorer, averaging 23.98 points per game. Not only that; he also scored a season-high 64 points, a performance that tied the all-time high by a local player set by Danilo Florencio in 1977. With Adornado presiding over the U-Tex offensive, backed up by Glenn McDonald, who is now coaching U-Tex, and Aaron James, the Wranglers went on to reach new heights, which they have never achieved before. U-Tex set a new winning margin record (55 points), the highest winning score (154), and the highest field goal average (63.21) and conversion (67). After that glorious stint, Adornado suddenly became a hot contender for the MVP award, In fact, he was trailing Philip Cezar, the eventual winner, by a slim margin of 400 points when he suddenly bowed out of contention only because of the Wranglers' failure to qualify into the semifinals. This year, the soft-spoken bachelor from Legaspi City, is not only in contention for the MVP award; he is himself leading the race for top honors, which spells P50,000 for the winner. After the Open conference, he has amassed a total 2131 statistical points, followed by Fortunato Co, Jr. (1958), Ramon Fernandez (1729), and Philip Cezar (1636). He is the leading local scorer with an average of 23.68 points per game. He has the highest field goal conversions of 272 points and the best free throw average of 88.15 per cent, scoring 119 of 135 attempts. Among the top 40 players, he was ranked ninth in scoring, beating such American imports like Ira Terrell, James Woods,Daryll Allums, Jim Zoet, B.B. Davis, and James Hardy.

TWO MVPs 
"That's the trouble with the present system of selecting an MVP," Adornado said. "Even if you deserve it, you won't have any chance at all if your team will not qualify into the semifinals. I have been suggesting all along to the PBA to have two MVPs for one season, one for the regular series and another for the championship, just like the way they do in the NBA. I think it's fair to all. In my case now, I'm not really thinking so much about it." Adomado added: "As of now winning an MVP award could only mean one thing to me: That I am back on top again. But other than "My two-year layoff was the most depressing years of my life." that, it doesn't mean anything to me because I've been there already. I have nothing more to prove be cause I was once the best within a certain period of time. Winning the award twice is more than enough. I'll just play the way I used to. He was introduced to the sport as early as when he was five years old. He still recalls it very fresh in his mind that day when his father destroyed one wheel of an abandoned, rusty mini bicycle. He converted the wheel into a ring and then nailed it, against a post inside their front yard. "The following day, my father bought me a juniorsized basketball and that started it all," Adornado said. "In the ensuing days, I would invite all the boys in our neighborhood to play with me." 

FANCY PLAYER
"WHEN I was a fifth grader at the Legaspi Port Elementary School I already knew how to play the game. Perhaps, that could be the reason why my talent in basketball is natural, inborn, as they say. When I reached the fourth grade, magaling na ako at kilala na ako sa lugar namin dahil mas matatanda at malalaki na ang aking mga kalaro. I was not really a good shooter then. I was more of a fancy player. A crowd pleaser. That's why I easily became popular among the old folks, and the girls." Adomado said he was only an average student. "I never had any academic honors," he said. "Pero Grade V pa lamang ako, marami na akong mga admirers. In my first year in high school (at Albay High), my lady teacher fell in love with me, not because of my class performance but because of my basketball skills." It did not do him any good though. The rumor had angered his father, who then saw to it that the boy William be transferred to another school to put him out of the teacher's sight. He was then transferred to the Divine Word College, his high school alma mater. Adornado also remembers that when he was in the elementary grades, he played volleyball and baseball. He says he was trained by his teacher as first baseman. During province-wide volleyball and baseball tournaments, he recalls, he was always a member of the Legaspi team. But after his elementary years, basketball became a provincial craze. He could not exactly remember what brought about the sudden rise of basketball popularity in the province. The intense rivalry among col legiate teams within the city of Legaspi could be the factor. The hot rivalry then between Yco and Ysmael could also be a major factor. "That was the first time I heard the name Ed Ocampo," he says. "Throughout my four years in high school, I played basketball.) "I WAS not a good shooter then. But my advantage over the other players was my height. I was already 5'11" when I was in my second year in high school. And I played center until 1 graduated from high school." He was a college freshman when he tried out for the Varsity team of the University of Santo Tomas Glowing Goldies; he was immediately signed up. He was supposed to try out with the University of the East Warriors when he arrived in Manila, but when he inquired about the tryouts at the UE PE department, it was all over. He then decided to try his luck at UST. In his first year with the Goldies, he had Larry Mumar, and George Lizares, who, like Adornado also became popular cagers, as teammates. He also had Andy Malkinson and Max Laurel as teammates when he reached his junior year and until his graduation with a degree in Business Administration.