PBA legend Terry Saldaña dies at 64

FORMER Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) player Antero “Terry” Saldaña died on Wednesday, his former team Barangay Ginebra San Miguel announced on their Facebook page. He was 64 years old.

Reports said Saldaña died of a “lingering kidney ailment.”

“So sorry to hear about Terry Saldaña’s passing,” wrote Ginebra head coach Tim Cone on Twitter. “I remember him well in those Ginebra and Swift days. He was so hard to stop around the basket, and I’ll remember him for coming back from his gruesome injury. It took a lot of character to do that. NSD (never say die), Terry.”

Meanwhile, the Maharlika Professional Basketball League (MPBL) sends its condolences to his family.

“Terry Saldaña made a name for himself as a tough, hardworking player, who was also one of the nicest guys around off the court,” the league wrote. “He was briefly part of the MPBL family as one of our staff. The league offers its sincerest condolences to the Saldaña family.”

Known as the “Plastic Man,” Saldaña played for seven PBA teams throughout his career between 1982 and 2000. He began his career with the Toyota Super Corollas.

He is more known playing for Barangay Ginebra, then known as Gilbey’s Gin before rebranding to its current name, from 1983 to 1987, then again from 1997 to 1998, when it was known as Gordon’s Gin. He was also known for playing alongside Robert “Big J” Jaworski during his tenure with the team.

While with Gilbey’s Gin in 1983 he led his team in scoring and rebounding, earning him the PBA’s first Most Improved Player award.

He was a five-time PBA champion. The PBA held a traditional “final buzzer” before the start of games on Thursday, in honor of Saldaña.