Mahindra Floodbuster | |||
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History | |||
Kia Sorento (2014–2015) Kia Carnival (2015) Mahindra Enforcer (2015–2016) Mahindra Floodbuster (2016–present) |
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Joined PBA | 2014 | ||
Team colors | Red, Black, White, Gray |
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Company | Columbian Autocar Corporation | ||
Owner(s) | Jose C. Alvarez | ||
Board governor | Tomas C. Alvarez Demosthenes Rosales (alternate) Bienvenido Santos (alternate) |
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Team manager | Eric Pineda Joe Ramos (assistant) |
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Head coach |
Chris Gavina (interim coach for Manny Pacquiao) |
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Championships | |||
None | |||
Uniforms | |||
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The Mahindra Floodbuster are a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). The team is owned by Columbian Autocar Corporation, the exclusive distributor of Mahindra and Kia automobiles in the Philippines.
On April 10, 2014, Columbian Autocar Corporation, along with Manila North Tollways Corporation (NLEX Road Warriors) and Ever Bilena Cosmetics, Inc. (Blackwater Elite) were approved by the PBA Board of Governors to become expansion teams for the 2014–15 PBA season. Upon entry to the PBA, the three teams will select players from a dispersal draft in July consisting of unprotected current PBA players and free agents. They will also get to pick rookies in the 2014 PBA draft in August. On June 9, 2014, the team held a press conference, announcing that boxer Manny Pacquiao will coach their team in the 2014–15 season. After announcing his intentions to join the draft, Pacquiao got picked 11th overall in the first round by the KIA team, thus becoming a playing coach.
A naming contest was held to determine the team's moniker or name. On August 24, 2014, hours after the 2014 PBA draft, Columbian Autocar Corporation president Ginia Domingo announced that they would take the moniker "Sorento", the name of their top-selling sports utility vehicle in the Philippines and United States. Prior to obtaining its official moniker, the team was dubbed as "The Kia Kamao" which is a call back to Pacquiao's nickname "Pambansang Kamao".