Toyota Super Corollas


The Toyota Super Corollas were a multi-titled basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association from 1975 to 1983. Founded in 1973 by businessman and sportsman Dante Silverio, the team - formally named Toyota Athletic Club - was owned by Delta Motor Corporation and played under various names - Komatsu Komets, Toyota Comets, Toyota Silver Tamaraws, Toyota Tamaraws, Toyota Super Diesels, Toyota Super Corollas and Toyota Silver Coronas.
In the PBA, it won nine championships, the sixth most in PBA history behind the San Miguel Beermen, the Alaska Aces, fierce rival Crispa Redmanizers, the Purefoods franchise and Barangay Ginebra San Miguel

Profile and franchise

is a Japanese brand of automobiles that was exclusively distributed by Delta Motor Corporation, owned by former Bulacan congressman and Marcos crony Ricardo Silverio, Sr. The team was first known as the Komatsu Komets in the Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association, one of the more successful teams of the amateur commercial league prior to the inception of the PBA. Sometime in January 1975, five MICAA teams met together at the old Elizalde canteen to sign a pre-organizational agreement for the formation of what is now known as the Philippine Basketball Association. Dante Silverio, Ricardo Silverio’s nephew, was the official representative of Toyota who signed on the dotted line.
When the league started, Toyota was known to be the Comets, retaining its nickname that they used when they were still branded as Komatsu. Sometime in 1977 or 1978, Toyota came out with a new vehicle called the Toyota Tamaraw, a utility vehicle marketed specifically for small to medium businesses. Hence, they became the Toyota Tamaraws. They also had an amateur team at that time playing in the MICAA, known as MAN Diesel. MAN Diesel, like their professional counterparts, were likewise successful in the MICAA and was considered as one of 3 of the powerhouse teams of the amateur league, along with Solid Mills and Imperial Textile Mills. MAN Diesel also became known as Frigidaire, the refrigerator maker, since Silverio was the owner of the said company. Also in 1978, a sister team, Filmanbank, a bank also owned by Silverio, joined the league after buying the 7-Up Uncolas' franchise. In the process, the Tamaraws were able to secure the biggest name of the Uncolas at that time, a 5'9 dynamo named Danny Florencio, since Filmanbank allowed their most prized player to be released to their sister team. Prior to that, Florencio sizzled with a league high 64 points in a game of 7-Up despite having two American import teammates in 7'0 Steve Stroud and 6'7 Chris MacMurray playing alongside him. Florencio, who was just involved in the first ever player trade conducted by the league in 1977, came from U/Tex along with Jimmy Otazu in lieu of the Uncolas' Tino Reynoso and Ulysses Rodríguez.
In 1981, the team was renamed the Toyota Super Corollas. When the 1983 season unfolded, they switched their name to the Toyota Silver Coronas but reverted back to the Toyota Super Corollas during the 1983 Open Conference. After the 1983 season, they traded longtime starting power forward Abe King to the San Miguel in order to cut the total payroll.
However, reeling from huge losses brought about by the economic crunch triggered by the assassination of former Senator Benigno Aquino, Jr., the league's glamorous team came to an end when Delta Motor Corporation sold the franchise to Asia Brewery which joined the league as Beer Hausen.

Playing style

In a time when defense was defined as “an individual's effort to stop or stymie the opposing team's counterpart”, Toyota's playing style was considered one of the most glamorous and worthy to watch. With team defense hardly known back then, Toyota was a typical run-and-gun team that depended heavily on their rebounding prowess. Hence, when you have an Andrew Fields, Bruce King, John Irving, Abe King, Ramon Fernandez and even a Bobby Jaworski collaring the rebounds, the most common spectacle was to see a baseball pass by the rebounder to a streaking player on the break for an easy twinner. Notables among the recipients of the baseball pass over the years in the Toyota lineup included Segura, Cortez, Tuadles, Arnaiz, and Legaspi. In the halfcourt, it was not uncommon to see a similar play that Fernandez and Jaworski employed in the recent Crispa-Toyota reunion game where Fernandez would post up, Jaworski would stay at the top of the arc and wait for Fernandez to be double-teamed. Once the double team is consummated, Jaworski either waits at the 3 point line or makes a straight cut in the middle of the lanes waiting for the blind pass of Fernandez for an easy two. Another common sight was to see Jaworski mapping out the play, cuts in the middle and makes the interior defense commit to him. He then throws a behind-the-back blind pass to cutting slotmen like Fernandez or King for an easy layup or throws it back to good buddy Arnaiz for a long range bomb shot from the arc. Hence, it wasn't a surprise to see Jaworski, Arnaiz and Fernandez being the first 3 PBA players to dish off 2,000 assists in their careers.
For defense, Toyota's starting unit had a better defensive stance against their counterparts in Crispa. With Jaworski, Fernandez and King anchoring the defense, it was like an impregnable Fort Knox to penetrate the individual defenses lay down by the team. It was a tribute therefore to Crispa's individuals' capabilities to go beyond this defense set up by the three. Crispa, however had the edge at the bench since they had noted defensive aces like Padim Israel, Joy Dionisio, Yoyoy Villamin, Bay Cristobal while Toyota had to contend with Herrera, Javier, Coloso and Bulaong to provide the defensive spunk.

Team highlights

Toyota, more than Crispa, was hounded with more controversies throughout their nine seasons in the league. There is no compelling reason for such, except that probably, Toyota's individual players were known to be more “independent-minded” while Crispa's superstars submitted to their team owner Danny Floro. Jaworski, who eventually became larger than life in the PBA, was involved in majority of these controversies, as well as Fernandez.

Team roster

In alphabetical order. Members of PBA Hall of Fame and PBA's Greatest Players are in boldface.
MICAA :