I GIVE way today to Ricardo Vidal Brown, the rookie of the year in the 1983 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) and the PBA MVP in 1985. Turning 63 on May 22, Brown, the owner of nine PBA titles, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2009.
A member of the San Miguel Beer 1989 PBA Grand Slam champion, the 6-foot-1 Brown and I had lunch with the recently-departed Eduardo “Danding” Cojuangco Jr. in 2013 in the company of lovebirds Popong and Tet Andolong and Ramon S. Ang at Danding’s San Miguel office in Mandaluyong City.
Brown’s tribute to the man fondly called Boss Danding:
“Without Boss Danding, there is no RB23. Mr. Cojuangco did more than provide me a chance to play basketball in the Philippines. He brought me home.
“Painful as Hell to write this…It’s taken me hours to write this…. Many people will post their condolences on Facebook for our loss of a beloved renaissance man who lived well ahead of his time…. But my story will be a bit different regarding my relationship and experiences with this great man.
“When Mr. Cojuangco [that’s how I called him] and I spoke on a personal level, it went well and above the sport of basketball.
“We talked about being Filipino and how much it meant to me to be in my Mother’s homeland. Some of you who know me on a personal level know that I wear my Pinoy Pride on my sleeve…almost to a fault. The Boss admired this and he told me so the day we spoke alone in his UCPB office in Makati when I tearfully asked for his blessing to leave him and play in the PBA. I didn’t want to leave the Boss…But our team was not playing or even practicing for an entire year. We were in limbo because of political issues beyond our control and I was in the prime of my athletic life. I was dying to play competitive basketball again. Taking a few classes at La Salle and wearing the Green jersey in exhibition games were not enough. The PBA opportunity was a reality, but it all depended on the Boss. I would have done whatever he wanted me to do. Mr. Cojuangco gave me his blessing and I will always remember what he said to me: ‘Ricardo, I can’t guarantee anything and I know you want to play again. You have my blessing to leave us and go to the PBA if that’s what you want to do. I predict great things to come for you. I wish you the best and if, for some reason, things don’t work out, you will always have a place with me here.’
“I will remember that conversation verbatim for the rest of my life.
“If you ask me to describe the Boss in three words, they would be Respect, Admiration and Loyalty…. Without Boss Danding, there is no RB23. I owe him so much because he damatically changed my life.
“Thank you for everything you did for me, Boss. You know my heart was with you from Day One when I got off that plane with Nestor Mayoralgo and Doc Carrascoso and stepped on Philippine soil for the first time.
“My loyalty to you was second to none. I told you that privately when we had lunch back in 2013 at your San Miguel office. I spoke softly to you so only you and I could hear [but I heard you, he-he] as I told you how special you are to me and I’ll be indebted to you forever.
“May you now rest in peace, Boss Danding. God Bless you, Sir.”
THAT’S IT Danding was also a reserved Air Force colonel and an ambassador-at-large. He placed a close third among seven candidates for president in the 1992 elections. Fidel V. Ramos was the winner and the late Miriam Defensor Santiago second. The other prominent losers were Ramon Mitra and Jovito Salonga (both deceased) and Imelda Marcos. Pundits then said that had Imelda not run, her votes would have been Danding’s—possibly making Cojuangco the victor.