Outgoing PBA chairman Patrick Gregorio, who serves as alternate governor of Talk ‘N Text, will be honored as the 2015 Accel-Executive of the Year when the PBA Press Corps (PBAPC) holds its Annual Awards Night this Wednesday at the Century Park Hotel.
The soft-spoken Tropang Texters executive will be feted with the award named after legendary Crispa Redmanizers team owner Danny Floro in a year that saw the pro league registered a new record number of teams and a new all-time high in crowd attendance.
Under Gregorio’s term, the PBA expanded to a record of 12 member-teams with the entry of expansion franchises KIA Motors and Blackwater.
The league also celebrated its 40-year existence with a lavish opening ceremony that attracted a new all-time crowd attendance of 52,612 at the new Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.
It was also under Gregorio’s watch that a documentary tracing Asia’s first ever play-for-pay league’s humble beginnings from 1975 onwards was produced.
The league likewise undertook a new direction following the entry of Asian imports in the season-ending Governors Cup, which further strengthened the PBA’s thrust to go global.