After the Metropolitan Basketball Association folded up in 2002, the clamor for a regional basketball did not die down. Several leagues with the community-based concept started to surface but none of them lasted. On such league was the National Basketball League, owned and operated by the Basketball Association of the Philippines, the former Philippine basketball governing body. In 2003, the BAP had asked the NBL group to give back the "National Basketball League" name and rights to the BAP. The NBL officials did so, regrouped, and came up with a new name: the National Basketball Conference, a league totally independent of the BAP. In 2004, the NBC played its first season with 8 teams participating, forming two divisions, Northern and Southern. It still adopted the MBA's Home and Away format, but introduced the "Road Swing" wherein which cross-division contests required a team to tackle all its opposition in one road trip. This formula was drawn up by then Basketball Operations chief Noel Zarate, who was also the voice behind the original NBC broadcasts. The opening game featured a matchup between the visiting Iloilo Warriors against the Cagayan de Oro Stars. The game went into double overtime with the visitors prevailing 114-110. Iloilo's Carlos Sayon registered 30 points in the win. Tribu Sugbo defeated Forward Taguig in a thrilling three game series to cop the first NBC National Championship. Egay Echavez of Ozamiz was the first league MVP. In 2005, new teams joined the league that included the Parañaque Jets, who made headlines by defeating the Basketball Association of the Philippines-sponsored RP-Cebuana Lhuillier Team in the NBC Preseason tournament. The Jets, though, failed to make the playoffs as the Ozamiz Cotta won the championship. For the 2006 season, new expansion team joined the league, Pagadian Explorers of Mayor Sammy S. Co, the tournament was divided into two conferences, similar to the format used by the Philippine Basketball Association and the Philippine Basketball League. Ozamiz Cotta won the first conference title in Game 3 against the expansion team Pagadian Explorers, the first ever expansion team in league history to reach finals, while the second conference is also won by Ozamis Cotta via sweep against the Batang Tagaytay Springs. For the 2007 season, a new team joined the league, GenSan-MP Pacman Warriors of the "Pambansang Kamao ng Pilipinas" Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao from General Santos City. The League has its TV partners the 24-hour Basketball TV and Viva Prime Channel. In 2008, it merged with the Mindanao Visayas Basketball Association, and Third Force Inc. to form the new Liga Pilipinas.
