Noli Locsin

Noli Locsin
Personal information
Born	October 19, 1971 (age 53); Bacolod, Philippines
Nationality	Filipino
Listed height	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Listed weight	215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
College	De La Salle
PBA draft	1994: 1st round, 1st overall
	Selected by the Tondeña 65 Rhum Masters
Playing career	1994–2005
Position	Power forward / small forward
Number	6
Career history
1994–1999	Tondeña 65 Rhum Masters / Ginebra San Miguel / Gordon's Gin Boars / Barangay Ginebra Kings
1999–2000	Pop Cola 800s / Sunkist Orange Juicers / Pop Cola Panthers
2001	Tanduay Rhum Masters
2002	Batang Red Bull Thunder
2003	Talk 'N Text Phone Pals
2004–2005	Sta. Lucia Realtors
2005	Alaska Aces
Career highlights and awards
	2× PBA champion (1997 Commissioner's, 2002 Commissioner's); 5× PBA All-Star (1994–1997, 1999); 2× PBA Mythical Second Team (1996, 1997); PBA All-Star Weekend Slam Dunk Contest champion (1996);

Luis Manuel Bespejo Locsin (born October 19, 1971), better known as Noli Locsin, is a Filipino retired professional basketball player.^[1]^[2] Dubbed as "The Tank", He is best known for his playing years with the Ginebra San Miguel franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association.

Playing career

Locsin played for the RP Youth team in 1990 before suiting up for back-to-back UAAP titlist De La Salle Green Archers. He had a brief stint with Triple-V Foodmasters in the Philippine Basketball League prior to its disbandment and then played for Nikon Electric Fan which completed a cinderella finish in the PBL.

When 6-9 Marlou Aquino, the most sought-after rookie, was out of the picture in the 1994 PBA draft, Ginebra, now renamed Tondeña 65, and the team that will pick first in the amateur draft, went for the next best option in Noli Locsin, a burly 6-3 power forward who can barrel his way into the toughest walls of the defenders.

He showed the Tondeña ballclub that it made the right choice when he emerged as the team's leading scorer and the league's leading local rebounder with his rookie season averages of 18.5 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.9 assists in 34.9 minutes.^[3] His stats are not enough through as Tondeña's struggles continued, winning just 12 of their 32 games in the 1994 season.

Playing for player-coach Robert Jaworski's "never-say-die" system, he flourished playing power forward while being undersized at only 6-3 without being able to develop outside shooting. A consistent low post threat, Locsin closed the size gap with his strength and skill although he began to fade out as soon as he parted ways with Jaworski.^[4] Before the arrival of Fil-Ams in the PBA, Locsin was considered one of the top bruisers of his time in a time when it was rare for a Filipino player with his bulk to move as quick and leap as he did. Locsin was then traded to Pop Cola in the mid-season in 1999 for Vergel Meneses. He drifted to other PBA teams such as Tanduay and Red Bull before retiring.

PBA career statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

^[5]

Season-by-season averages

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1994	Tondeña	32	34.9	.532	.222	.617	8.8	2.9	.8	.8	18.5
1995	Ginebra	29	36.3	.499	.111	.684	10.6	2.6	.4	.7	17.6
1996	Ginebra	64	32.5	.530	.222	.636	7.1	2.5	.7	.5	15.5
1997	Gordon's Gin	66	32.5	.504	.188	.682	7.5	2.8	.6	.3	13.1
1998	Gordon's Gin / Ginebra	31	28.1	.514	.167	.634	5.6	2.3	.8	.5	11.4
1999	Barangay Ginebra	39	38.4	.458	.333	.500	7.9	2.8	.4	.6	13.9
1999	Pop Cola	39	38.4	.458	.333	.500	7.9	2.8	.4	.6	13.9
2000	Pop Cola / Sunkist	34	33.2	.446	.222	.532	5.2	2.8	.3	.5	8.5
2001	Tanduay	37	26.0	.473	.000	.519	6.1	1.2	.4	.4	8.1
2002	Red Bull	32	9.6	.437	.000	.500	1.6	.7	.2	.1	2.9
2003	Talk 'N Text	26	8.2	.424	.000	.500	2.0	.6	.1	.0	3.1
2004–05	Sta. Lucia	24	10.5	.350	—	.316	2.2	.6	.2	.0	2.6
2004–05	Alaska	24	10.5	.350	—	.316	2.2	.6	.2	.0	2.6
Career		413	28.2	.493	.200	.614	6.2	2.1	.5	.4	11.3

References

^ Virgil Lopez (August 31, 2010). "Bacolod cager impresses mentors". Sun.Star Cebu. Retrieved February 10, 2011.
^ Navarro, June (January 17, 2002). "Fedex releases Locsin, Hawkins". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved February 10, 2011.
^ Syd Salazar (October 24, 2011). "20 Best Rookie Seasons in the PBA (played in 2003 - present)". Sydrified.org. Archived from the original on September 11, 2012. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
^ Christian Angelo Jacinto (March 21, 2011). "The Preserved Identity: The story of a team of the masses, the story of the Barangay Ginebra Kings". Hoo.ph. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
^ "Noli Locsin Player Profile - PBA-Online.net". PBA-Online.net. Archived from the original on 2017-03-02.

External links

Player Profile at PBA-Online!

[1] Virgil Lopez (August 31, 2010). "Bacolod cager impresses mentors". Sun.Star Cebu. Retrieved February 10, 2011.

[2] Navarro, June (January 17, 2002). "Fedex releases Locsin, Hawkins". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved February 10, 2011.

[3] Syd Salazar (October 24, 2011). "20 Best Rookie Seasons in the PBA (played in 2003 - present)". Sydrified.org. Archived from the original on September 11, 2012. Retrieved August 2, 2015.

[4] Christian Angelo Jacinto (March 21, 2011). "The Preserved Identity: The story of a team of the masses, the story of the Barangay Ginebra Kings". Hoo.ph. Retrieved August 2, 2015.

[5] "Noli Locsin Player Profile - PBA-Online.net". PBA-Online.net. Archived from the original on 2017-03-02.

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