Nicholas M. Bayaca Belasco (born December 10, 1973) is a Filipino-American professional basketball player who last played for the Pasig Sta. Lucia Realtors of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL). He was drafted 2nd overall by Sunkist in 1997. Born in Stockton, California, he was an import for the Westports Malaysia Dragons in the Asean Basketball League. He was an assistant coach for the Phoenix Pulse Fuel Masters of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He founded the Belasco Unlimited Skills Academy (BUSA).[1]
Early life
[edit]Belasco grew up in Stockton, California, which is home to a large community of Filipinos.[2] Before he came to the Philippines, he had the nickname of "Saint Nic."[3] He is a third-generation Filipino-American with his ancestor coming over in 1926 doing farm labor in the Stockton area. Belasco was recruited by agent Bobby Rius during his stint in the San Francisco Pro-Am leagues.[4]
Professional career
[edit]Sunkist Orange Juicers/Pop Cola Panthers
[edit]Belasco was drafted 2nd overall by Sunkist in 1997.[5] He was traded to the Beermen.
San Miguel Beermen
[edit]Belasco was traded along with Dwight Lago and Cris Bolado in exchange for Mythical Team selection Nelson Asaytono and Will Antonio.[6] He has won 8 championships in his PBA career, six of them which he earned with San Miguel Beermen. In the 2004-05 Philippine Cup, he averaged around 17 points, 11.7 boards, 1.34 assists, 0.8 steals, 0.4 blocked shots and 1.8 errors in 37 minutes.[3] This was highlighted by a 30-point performance against his former team.[3]
Alaska Aces
[edit]Belasco was traded along with a second-round pick to Alaska for Brandon Cablay and rookie center Mark Kong after the 2005-06 Fiesta Conference.[7] He won a championship with the Alaska Aces in the 2007 Fiesta Conference.[2]
Welcoat Dragons
[edit]During the 2006–2007 season, Belasco was traded to the Welcoat Dragons for Junjun Cabatu.[8]
Coca-Cola Tigers
[edit]On March 8, 2008, Belasco was shipped to the Coca-Cola Tigers in exchange for Mark Isip.[9]
Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters
[edit]On August 3, 2009, in a three-way trade involving the Barako Bull Energy Boosters, Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters, and Coca-Cola Tigers, Belasco was shipped to the Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters, Rob Reyes to the Barako Bull Energy Boosters and Larry Rodriguez to the Coca-Cola Tigers.[10]
Sta. Lucia Realtors
[edit]The Texters gave him, Ali Peek, and Pong Escobal to Sta. Lucia in a three-team, eight-player deal.[10]
Westports Malaysia Dragons
[edit]He unretired to be an import for the Westsports Malaysia Dragons.[1]
Powerade Tigers
[edit]In June 2012, after the Westports Malaysia Dragons were eliminated by the San Miguel Beermen in the semi-finals of the ABL, he was signed by the Powerade Tigers.[11]
Return to Alaska Aces
[edit]One month later, he returned to the Aces along with Eddie Laure. In 2013, he won his 8th championship when the Aces won the 2013 Commissioner's Cup.[12]
He was then placed in the 2014 expansion draft where the Kia Sorento picked him.[13] He practiced with the team,[14] but didn't play any games with them. Thus, he was forced into retirement.[15]
Pasig Sta. Lucia Realtors (MPBL)
[edit]Five years after retiring, he returned to playing basketball, this time with the Pasig Sta. Lucia Realtors.[16] He was 45 years old at this time.[16] He played under the "Fil-Am" category.[16]
Coaching career
[edit]After Kia didn't play him, he became the head coach of the Laguna BUSA Warriors.[17]
In 2016, he became an assistant coach under Ariel Vanguardia for the Phoenix Pulse Fuel Masters.[1] He was tasked with developing their big men, such as Prince Caperal.[18]
Player profile
[edit]Belasco was one of the many reliable big men in the league during his playing days. He was a workhorse inside the paint and is a good shooter from the outside.[2] Belasco is also a proven defense specialist.[2]
Personal life
[edit]He is married to Maria Rafaella Verdadero, a former Miss Philippines-Australia and Ms. Binibing Pilipinas-World 2003, since 2004.[19]
After retiring in 2014, Belasco put up the Belasco Unlimited Skills Academy (BUSA) with fellow ex-PBA star Ali Peek.[15]
After his assistant coaching career, he focused more on his job as the general manager of a sports facility in Makati.[5] He became an operations manager for ASM Global in September 2023.[4]
PBA career statistics
[edit]| 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 |
Correct as of February 19, 2022[20]
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Pop Cola | 38 | 31.7 | .468 | .000 | .722 | 6.1 | 1.0 | .5 | .7 | 8 |
| 1998 | 52 | 23.3 | .347 | .500 | .606 | 4.5 | .7 | .3 | .7 | 4.8 | |
| 1999 | Pop Cola/ San Miguel | 45 | 32.9 | .437 | .000 | .660 | 6.4 | 1.3 | .4 | .6 | 6.2 |
| 2000 | San Miguel | 52 | 32.5 | .530 | .000 | .713 | 7.9 | .8 | .3 | .6 | 7.0 |
| 2001 | 70 | 31.7 | .515 | .000 | .776 | 7.0 | .9 | .3 | .4 | 8.4 | |
| 2002 | 47 | 26.5 | .431 | .361 | .700 | 5.2 | 1.0 | .4 | .3 | 9.3 | |
| 2003 | 50 | 36.4 | .382 | .272 | .606 | 9.4 | 1.7 | .8 | .3 | 13.2 | |
| 2004-05 | 78 | 35.5 | .395 | .318 | .746 | 8.9 | 1.8 | .5 | .3 | 12.3 | |
| 2005-06 | San Miguel/ Alaska | 48 | 35.3 | .394 | .349 | .671 | 9 | 2.2 | .9 | .5 | 13.2 |
| 2006–07 | Alaska | 53 | 31.7 | .373 | .314 | .610 | 7.6 | 1.6 | .4 | .3 | 10 |
| 2007–08 | Welcoat/ Coca-Cola | 39 | 33.3 | .352 | .314 | .717 | 10.4 | 1.5 | .7 | .4 | 10.8 |
| 2008–09 | Coca-Cola | 32 | 32.1 | .393 | .265 | .699 | 7.7 | 1.3 | .3 | .3 | 11.8 |
| 2009–10 | Talk 'N Text/ Sta. Lucia | 34 | 17.6 | .344 | .244 | .639 | 3.8 | .5 | .2 | .3 | 4.3 |
| 2011–12 | Powerade | 4 | 15 | .444 | .000 | .333 | 5.0 | .3 | .5 | .3 | 2.5 |
| 2012–13 | Alaska | 32 | 5.7 | .263 | .200 | .700 | 1.3 | .1 | .0 | .1 | .9 |
| 15 | 8.6 | .250 | .100 | .000 | 1.3 | .0 | .0 | .0 | 1 | ||
| Career | 689 | 29.5 | .407 | .302 | .687 | 6.9 | 1.2 | .4 | .4 | 8.7 | |
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Terrado, Reuben (June 21, 2016). "Nic Belasco glad to be back in PBA, this time as assistant coach for Phoenix". Spin.ph. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ a b c d Bartholomew, Rafe (2010). Pacific rims : beermen ballin' in flip-flops and the Philippines' unlikely love affair with basketball. New York: New American Library. ISBN 978-0-451-22999-1. OCLC 462903288.
- ^ a b c Zaldivar, A. C. "SAINT NIC". Philstar.com. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ a b "Kwentong GILAS with PBA Legends Jimmy Alapag at Nic Belasco". September 18, 2023 – via YouTube.
- ^ a b Terrado, Reuben (March 19, 2019). "Where R They Now: A whole new world for ex-PBA player Nic Belasco". Spin.ph. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ Leongson, Randolph B. (November 10, 2021). "Arwind Santos just the latest SMB mainstay to be traded. See list". Spin.ph. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ "Alaska trades Cablay, Kong for Belasco, future draftee". Philstar.com. February 7, 2006. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ Beltran, Joey Villar, Nelson. "Welcoat taps Belasco; TnT gets Aljamal". Philstar.com. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Beltran, Joey Villar, Nelson. "Belasco goes to Tigers for Isip". Philstar.com. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b Castillo, Grace B. (May 14, 2010). "Fluid Talk 'N Text streaks to sixth win". Arab News. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ "Fil-Am Stories: Nic Belasco —". Asian Journal News. September 17, 2012. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ "Alaska sweeps Ginebra to win 14th PBA title". RAPPLER. May 19, 2013. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ "FLASH: Blackwater makes Danny Ildefonso the first pick of PBA dispersal draft". Spin.ph. July 8, 2014. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ "Where to, Kia? PBA expansion team stuck in first gear in bid to form competitive lineup". Spin.ph. July 28, 2014. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ a b "As PBA veterans face retirement, Nic Belasco, Atoy Co admit quitting is hardest thing". Spin.ph. August 11, 2015. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ a b c Gasgonia, Dennis (June 13, 2019). "MPBL: Nic Belasco, 45, on making Pasig roster — 'I want to teach the young guys'". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ Terrado, Reuben (March 12, 2015). "Former PBA teammates Nic Belasco, Ali Peek reunite in foray into coaching". Spin.ph. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ Ramos, Gerry (December 1, 2016). "Prince Caperal passes ultimate test against Fajardo with flying colors". Spin.ph. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ FERNANDEZ, RHOEL V (January 26, 2017). "Miss Universe Pia Wurtzbach is dating a sportsman. She's not the first one". Spin.ph. Retrieved February 18, 2022.
- ^ "Nic Belasco Player Profile". PBA-Online!. Archived from the original on February 18, 2015. Retrieved February 18, 2022.