1996 PBA season

Updated on Nov 19, 2024

Edit

Comment

Picked by Ginebra San Miguel Runners-up Purefoods TJ Hotdogs Start date 1996 Top draft pick Marlou Aquino		All-Filipino Cup champions Alaska Milkmen Commissioner's Cup champions Alaska Milkmen Number of teams 8 Season MVP Johnny Abarrientos

Duration February 18, 1996 – December 17, 1996 Runners-up Formula Shell Zoom Masters TV partner PBA on Vintage Sports (Intercontinental Broadcasting Corporation) Similar 1994 PBA season, 1998 PBA season, 2001 PBA season, 2000 PBA season, 2003 PBA season

The 1996 PBA season was the 22nd season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

Season highlights

The league's broadcast partner, Vintage Sports, switched networks from People's Television to Intercontinental Broadcasting Corporation. They also changed their primary language from English to Tagalog.

Crowd-favorite Ginebra San Miguel return to their winning ways after years of being a doormat, with the entry of top draft pick, 6-9 Marlou Aquino, the Ginebras advances in the semifinals for the first time in three years during the All-Filipino Cup, their season was highlighted by a finals trip in the third conference, losing to grandslam champions Alaska Milkmen.

The Pepsi Mega Bottlers sold their franchise to PILTEL and was renamed Mobiline Cellulars at the start of the Commissioner's Cup.

The Alaska Milkmen became the fourth team to win the PBA Grand slam, by sweeping all three conferences of the season, joining the 1976 and 1983 Crispa Redmanizers and the 1989 San Miguel Beermen.

Johnny Abarrientos became the first pure guard to win the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award since Ricardo Brown in 1985.