Happy Birthday, Richard Del Rosario ( Aug 25 )

Happy Birthday, Richard Del Rosario! ( Aug 25 )

1996 PBA Rookie Draft 9th overall pick
2001 PBA Governors’ Cup champion 
12x PBA champion as assistant coach
2013-14 PBA Grandslam champion assistant coach
2x UAAP champion
Dela Salle green Archers forward
PBA broadcaster

Source : Assorted Magazines (PBA Archives Collections)

RICHARD del Rosario is one person who does not want to look back and think about things that might have been. That's why he continued pursuing his dream of playing in the PBA. And he succeeded. For those who have really followed the UAAP games, del Rosario is best remembered as the guy who battled the likes of Danny Francisco, Eric Reyes and Alex Araneta in the 1987 UAAP Finals between Ateneo and La Salle. The Blue Eagles clinched the championship that year.  Del Rosario was but a rookie then. And Zandro Limpot was yet to don the Green Archers' jersey. "Nauna ako ng isang taon kay Jun. He arrived in 1989 and we won the championship that year," reminisces del Rosario who never really got to blossom into a starting center for La Salle. So, if Richard had been in an earlier batch than Zandro, then why is it that del Rosario only turned pro this year. Limpot had moved up to the PBA in 1993 and won Rookie of the Year honors. "In 1990, I injured my knee," said del Rosario who sustained a torn anterior cruciate ligament. Sure, he had the knee operated on but the healing process was long. Much more, the psychological healing process took a longer period. That's why he stopped playing for about five years. In those non-basketball days, he went on to earn a degree in psychology. I worked at Vetronics and later moved to Zamboanga and Basilan where he tended a poutry farm as a contract grower for RFM.