| 1979 PBA season | |
|---|---|
| League | Philippine Basketball Association |
| Sport | Basketball |
| TV partner/s | GTV |
| Regular season | |
| Season MVP | Atoy Co (Crispa) |
| Top scorer | Atoy Co (Crispa) |
| Finals | |
| All-Filipino Conference champions | Crispa Redmanizers |
| All-Filipino Conference runners-up | Toyota Tamaraws |
| Open Conference champions | Royal Tru Orange |
| Open Conference runners-up | Toyota Tamaraws |
| Invitational Championship champions | Toyota Tamaraws |
| Invitational Championship runners-up | Walk Tall Jeans Makers |
The 1979 PBA season was the fifth season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
Season highlights[]
- After a two-year absence of playing against each other in the championship between the league's most noted rivalry, Crispa and Toyota played again in the finals during the All-Filipino Conference. Crispa prevailed in five games, winning the deciding game, 118-111 on July 7.
- On September 4, the visiting Washington Bullets, which lost to Seattle SuperSonics in the 1979 NBA Finals, played against a PBA All-Star Selection at the Araneta Coliseum in an exhibition game attended by Philippines First Lady Imelda Marcos, the Bullets with the line-up of hall of famers Elvin Hayes, Wes Unseld and among others, Greg Ballard, Dave Corzine and coach by Dick Motta, won the match, 133-123. The PBA selection were coach by Baby Dalupan and played with five imports and one locals from each of the nine ballclubs.
- Royal Tru-Orange won their first PBA title in the Open Conference, defeating Toyota Tamaraws, 102-101 in Game 4, for a 3-1 series win. The Orangemen, led by imports Otto Moore and Larry Pounds, became the fourth team to win a championship in the 1970s.
- The Toyota Tamaraws avoided a third runner-up finish in the season by winning the Invitational championship against rival Crispa Walk Tall Jeans. The 3-1 series win was their first finals victory over Crispa, after losing five straight in their previous title showdown, as three different teams emerge champions in the league's fifth season.
Champions[]
- All Filipino Conference: Crispa Redmanizers
- Open Conference: Royal Tru-Orange
- Invitational Championship: Toyota Tamaraws
- Team with best win-loss percentage: Toyota Tamaraws (44-18, .710)
- Best Team of the Year: Toyota Tamaraws (3rd)
Individual awards[]
- Most Valuable Player: Atoy Co (Crispa)
- Rookie of the Year: Arnie Tuadles (Toyota)
- Mythical Five:
*Robert Jaworski (Toyota) *Atoy Co (Crispa) *Ramon Fernandez (Toyota) *Arnie Tuadles (Toyota) *Philip Cezar (Crispa)
Board of governors[]
- Leopoldo Prieto (Commissioner)
- Domingo Itchon (President, Elizalde and Co., Inc.)
- Dante Silverio (Vice-President, Delta Motor Corporation)
- Walter Euyang (Treasurer, Universal Textile Mills)
- Jose Castro, Jr. (Executive Secretary)
- Pablo Carlos (Delta Motor Corporation)
- Valeriano "Danny" Floro (P. Floro and Sons)
- Emerson Coseteng (Mariwasa Group)
- Leonardo "Skip" Guinto (San Miguel Corporation)
- Porfirio Zablan (CFC Corporation)
- Carlos Palanca III (La Tondeña, Inc.)