Wikipedia - Biñan Tatak Gel
The Biñan Tatak Gel is a Filipino professional basketball team based in Biñan, Laguna. The team competes in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) as a member of the league's South Division. They are one of five teams based in the Calabarzon region.
The team began play during the 2018–19 season as the Laguna Heroes. The original name references the national hero of the Philippines, Jose Rizal, who was born in Calamba. The team has also played in the Pilipinas Super League.
As of 2023, Laguna/Biñan is the oldest MPBL team to have yet to make a playoff appearance. They are also tied with the Parañaque Patriots for the longest playoff drought in the league, both having missed the playoffs since 2019.
History
2018–2023: Original franchise
The Laguna Heroes joined the MPBL as one of sixteen expansion teams for the 2018–19 season. The team finished with a 10-15 record, finishing ninth in the South Division.
For the 2019–20 season, the team was renamed as the BIñan City Krah Heroes and later as Biñan City Luxxe White. The team finished in tenth with a 12-18 record, matching their winning percentage from last season.
Entering the 2021 Invitational, the team was renamed as Laguna Heroes Krah Asia, bringing back the team's old name. In the Invitational, the team lost in all of their group stage games. In the 2022 season, the team only won three of their 21 games, giving them the second-worst record in the division and third-worst in the league.
In 2023, the team was renamed to Laguna Krah Asia.
2023–present: Current franchise
In November 2023, the Imus SV Squad relocated to Biñan and renamed the team as Biñan Tatak Gel. The team competed in the Pilipinas Super League for the 2023–24 President's Cup. With a 17–1 record, Biñan held the best regular season record of the season. Despite making through the first two rounds, Biñan would eventually lose to the Quezon Titans in the Semifinals.
Imus' relocation to Biñan is expected to stay for the 2024 MPBL season, while a new team named the Imus Agimat also joined the league. For consistency purposes, Biñan Tatak Gel's records in Imus were transferred to the new Imus team while the records of the previous Laguna/Biñan City team were merged into Biñan Tatak Gel.
Les Heroes sont connus pour leur style de jeu agressif et leur capacité à marquer des points de manière constante. Ils sont dirigés par l'entraîneur principal, Jeff Viernes, un ancien joueur de l'équipe nationale philippine. L'équipe compte un certain nombre de joueurs talentueux, dont l'ancien membre de la PBA Ronald Tubid, et le joueur d'origine américaine Jeremiah Gray.
Les Heroes ont connu une première saison réussie dans la MPBL, se qualifiant pour les séries éliminatoires et atteignant le deuxième tour. Ils ont continué à être compétitifs au cours des saisons suivantes, étant considérés comme l'une des meilleures équipes de la ligue.
En dehors du terrain, les Laguna Heroes sont activement impliqués dans leur communauté. L'équipe organise des cliniques de basket-ball pour les jeunes, et participe à des activités caritatives et sociales.