The Shell Turbo Chargers were a

Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines composed of twelve company-branded franchised teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia and is the se ...

team from 1985 to 2005. It won four PBA championships, two from 1998 to 1999. Shell sold its franchise to PBL team

Welcoat Paints The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters are a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association owned by Asian Coatings Philippines, Inc. It debuted in the league in the 2006–07 PBA season after acquiring the franchise right ...

in February 2006. Aside from being known as the Turbo Chargers, Shell was also known as Shell Azodrin Bugbusters, Shell Azocord Super Bugbusters, Shell Oilers, Shell Rimula X, Formula Shell Zoom Masters, Shell Helix Oilers and Shell Velocity.

History

Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation acquired the franchise of the famed

Crispa Redmanizers The Crispa Redmanizers were a multi-titled Filipino basketball team that played in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) from 1975 to 1984. It was one of the nine founding teams of the PBA, winning a total of thirteen PBA championships, i ...

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

for a reported sum of two million pesos. In its debut season, the team was known as Shell Azodrin Bugbusters under head coach

Freddie Webb Freddie Nelle Webb (born November 24, 1942) is a Filipino retired basketball player and coach, former politician, and television and radio personality. Education He completed his elementary education at San Beda College and his degree in Bach ...

, with several Crispa players, namely, Philip Cezar and

Bernie Fabiosa Bernie Fabiosa (born July 23, 1954) is a retired Filipino professional basketball player and actor. He spent most of his playing days with the Crispa Redmanizers in the PBA. During his heyday, he is tops in career steals, earning for himself th ...

, in addition to a former Crispa Redmanizer William Bogs Adornado from Great Taste and Rey Lazaro from Yco-Tanduay. Shell got its first All Filipino finals berth against Great Taste when they defeated Ginebra in a rubber match. The following season in 1986, Shell carried the name Pilipinas Shell Oilers, Shell Helix and Formula Shell Spark Aiders, respectively, with Olympian Ed Ocampo taking over from Freddie Webb, who resigned as Shell coach midway in the semifinals of the first conference. Shell remained a hard-luck team with national coach Joe Lipa, becoming Shell's third coach in 1987 3rd conference, as the team was now known as Shell Azocord Super Bugbusters. The team's rise to fame came during the late-1980s when they were bannered by two U.P.

Diliman Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...

standouts

Ronnie Magsanoc Ronald "Ronnie" Magsanoc (born April 11, 1966) is a Filipino coach, basketball analyst, and retired professional basketball player in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He was known for his moniker "The Point Laureate". Collegiate car ...

and

Benjie Paras Venancio Johnson Paras Jr. (born October 2, 1968), better known as Benjie Paras, is a Filipino actor, comedian, and a retired professional basketball player who played for Shell Turbo Chargers and San Miguel Beermen of the Philippine Basketb ...

to solidify Shell as one of the more popular teams in the pro league. Former Toyota mentor

Dante Silverio Edmundo "Dante" S. Silverio, Sr. (born October 17, 1937), is a Filipino people, Filipino painter, former basketball coach and former champion race car driver. Motorsports Silverio rose to prominence in 1972, when he captured a rare double feat, ...

was also responsible for transforming Shell to a championship-caliber ballclub. Paras is also the only PBA player to win the Rookie of the Year and the coveted

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

plum in the same season when the center won it all in 1989. In the

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...

PBA Open Conference, Shell won its first-ever PBA championship defeating crowd-favorite Añejo Rhum 4–2. But the series was marred by Añejo's infamous walkout in the sixth and final game of the series to award the Shell the win in Game six and the series clincher. At that time, Shell was reinforced by import Bobby Parks, who holds seven Best Import Awards in his PBA career, most of them with the Shell franchise. A year later, Shell suffered one of the biggest collapses in PBA finals history during the

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

PBA First Conference, when they blew a 3–1 series lead in the series eventually losing to Ginebra in seven games on a Rudy Distrito game-winner. Shell won the

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

PBA First Conference crown but waited six years before winning another PBA crown, by capturing the

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

Governor's Cup. They defeated Mobiline Phone Pals in seven games. Their final championship came during the

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

PBA All-Filipino Conference defeating heavy favorite Tanduay Rhum in six games. Shell was bannered by Paras, Gerry Esplana, Victor Pablo, Chris Jackson and

Noy Castillo Tito "Noy" Castillo (born August 21, 1974) is a retired Filipino-American professional basketball player who played for the Shell Velocity and Purefoods Tender Juicy Giants in the Philippine Basketball Association. PBA career Shell Velocity K ...

as one of their primary players under head coach Perry Ronquilio. 1999 also became a banner year for Paras, who won his second Most Valuable Player award in his career, despite the arrival of several talented

Filipino-foreigner The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines composed of twelve company-branded franchised teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia and is the se ...

players during the same season. However, injuries in the next three seasons forced Paras to retire after the

2003 season 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

. Shell suffered several slumps in the next four seasons (

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

) before resurfacing during the 2004-2005 season as one of the contenders for the PBA crown. Under head coach Leo Austria (who won the Rookie of the Year honors in 1985 as a player for Shell), the Turbo Chargers placed fourth in the PBA Philippine Cup and third in the season-ending 2005 PBA Fiesta Conference.

Disbandment

During the 2004-05 PBA season, Shell was rumored to be disbanding after the season because its mother company,

Royal Dutch Shell Shell plc is a British multinational oil and gas company headquartered in London, England. Shell is a public limited company with a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and secondary listings on Euronext Amsterdam and the New Yo ...

in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

believed it was no longer feasible to continue maintaining its PBA team. It was believed that port company Harbour Centre was planning to purchase the rights of the Shell franchise. However, both parties did not come into an agreement as Harbour Centre was offering less than what Shell wanted. On August 3, 2005, Shell announced that it was taking a leave of absence from the league. Before the announcement, Shell traded away most of its players. Tony Dela Cruz and Rich Alvarez were dealt to the Alaska Aces while Ronald Tubid was sent to the Air21 Express. The remaining members of the team were selected through the dispersal draft. Shell was given a six-month deadline for the team to either return to the league in the next PBA season or sell the team to a prospective buyer. In January 2006, PBL powerhouse

acquired the franchise for and entered the league in the 2006-07 PBA season

Season-by-season records

Three-conference era

Two-conference era

*one-game playoffs
**team had twice-to-beat advantage

Cumulative records

Awards

Individual awards

PBA Press Corps Individual Awards

All-Star Weekend

Notable players

PBA 25 greatest players

* William "Bogs" Adornado #33 - played for Shell in its inaugural year *

Philip Cezar Philip Dudley Cezar (born December 1, 1952) is a Filipino former basketball coach, player and politician. Known by the monikers "Mr. Stretch", "''Tapal'' King" and "The Scholar", he was part of the fabled Crispa Redmanizers ballclub of the Phil ...

#18 - "The Sultan of Swat"/"The Scholar"/"Mr. Stretch"/"King Philip" played for Shell in its inaugural year *

#15 - "The Sultan of Swipe"/"Fabulous" played for Shell in its inaugural year *

Abet Guidaben Alberto "Abet" Guidaben (born September 14, 1952) is a Filipino former professional basketball player in the PBA. He was part of the fabled Crispa Redmanizers ballclub that won two Grand Slams, in 1976 and 1983. He was a two-time PBA Most Va ...

#41 - final team he played before ending his PBA career *

Freddie Hubalde Alfredo Hubalde (born September 14, 1953), also known as Freddie Hubalde, is a retired Filipino professional basketball player in the PBA. Collegiate career Hubalde played college ball for the Mapúa Institute of Technology, before eventuall ...

#10 - played for Shell in 1989. *

#5 - "The Point Laureate"/"The Navigator" led Shell to two championships, many time All-Star and Mythical team selections *

#14 - "The Tower of Power" is a 2-time PBA MVP, only player to win the Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player in the same season (1989)

Other notable players

Paul Alvarez Paul Beleno "Bong" Alvarez (born June 15, 1968) is a Filipino retired professional basketball player of the Philippine Basketball Association. Dubbed as "Mr. Excitement" because of his high-leaping, slam-dunking acts. Basketball career At the ...

* Romeo Ang *

Rich Alvarez Richard Alvarez (born October 30, 1980) is a Japanese-born Filipino former professional basketball player and coach. He last played for the Kia Picanto of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He was the first overall pick of 2004 PBA D ...

#10 - 2004-05 Rookie of the Year *

Leo Austria Leovino R. Austria (born March 14, 1958), better known as Leo Austria, is a Filipino former professional basketball player and the current head coach of the San Miguel Beermen in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). Playing career Aust ...

#13 - 1985 Rookie of the Year * Rensy Bajar * Richard Bognot #24 *

Sonny Cabatu Sonny is a common nickname and occasional given name. Often it can be a derivative of the English word "Son", a name derived from the Ancient Germanic element *sunn meaning "sun", a nickname derived from the Italian name Salvatore (especially in N ...

#5 *

Chris Calaguio Christian Jay Calaguio (born December 26, 1975, in Makati, Philippines) is a Filipino former professional basketball player. He last played for the San Miguel Beermen in the Philippine Basketball Association. He is a former San Beda Red Cub cage ...

* Arturo Cristobal *

Rey Cuenco Reynaldo "Rey" Cuenco (March 17, 1960 – August 15, 1996) was a Filipino former professional basketball player in the Philippine Basketball Association. Career highlights A native of Pampanga, Rey became part of the Masagana 99 team in the PAB ...

* Arthur del Rosario * Onchie dela Cruz *

Tony dela Cruz Anthony Bryan Davis dela Cruz (born August 24, 1978) is a Filipino-American former professional basketball player and coach. He played majority of his career for the Alaska Aces (PBA), Alaska Aces of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), ...

* Romeo dela Rosa #12 * Joel Dualan * Jolly Escobar #32 * Gerry Esplana #30 * Joey Guanio * Leopoldo Herrera *

Mike Hrabak Michael Allen Pasana Hrabak (born August 27, 1979) is a Filipino-Turkish former professional basketball player. He last played for the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters of the Philippine Basketball Association. He was drafted second overall by Sh ...

* Chris Jackson * Elmer Lago #3 *

Eddie Laure Eddie Bicoy Laure (born July 6, 1977) is a Filipino former professional basketball player and politician. Known by many as The Dominator and more recently, The Bounty Hunter for his daring and stunning ability to search and get loose balls on t ...

* Rey Lazaro #12 * Alejandro Lim * Erwin Luna * Billy Mamaril * Jimmy Manansala * Manuel Marquez #71 * Jojo Martin #10 * Porferio Marzan * Jay Mendoza * Peter Naron * Romulo Orillosa *

Victor Pablo Victor Pablo (born August 8, 1970) is a retired Filipino professional basketball player in the Philippine Basketball Association. Playing career A former king Tamaraw at Far Eastern University, Pablo was the second overall pick in the 1993 PBA ...

#33 * Jay Ramirez #2 *

Biboy Ravanes Melchor "Biboy" Ravanes (born January 6, 1959) is a former Filipino professional basketball player and former head coach of the San Miguel Beermen in the Philippine Basketball Association. Prior to this, he was SMB's longtime assistant coach. P ...

#6 * Ricky Relosa #15 * Jing Ruiz #8 * Christopher Aguilar (Unsigned) *

Mark Telan Mark Clemence Telan (born January 12, 1976) is a Filipino former professional basketball player. He last played for the Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters in the Philippine Basketball Association. A former De La Salle Green Archer, he was 2-time UAAP ...

* Richie Ticzon *

Arnie Tuadles Arnulfo "Arnie" Tuadles (August 15, 1956 – November 2, 1996) was a Filipino professional basketball player in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). Career Tuadles began his career as a stalwart in the Manila Industrial and Commercial At ...

#11 * Calvin Tuadles #33 *

Terry Saldaña Antero Saldaña (November 17, 1958 – February 1, 2023) was a Filipino professional basketball player who played his entire career in the Philippine Basketball Association. Player profile Coming straight from the MICAA, Saldaña was signed t ...

* Dale Singson * Rainier Sison #18 *

Ronald Tubid Ronald Tubid (born October 15, 1981) is a Filipino professional basketball coach and former player who is the team manager of the Terrafirma Dyip of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He last played for the San Miguel Beermen of the P ...

Manny Victorino Manuel "Manny" Victorino (born December 30, 1958) is a Filipino retired professional basketball player in the Philippine Basketball Association. Player profile Victorino is a 6–foot–5 slotman with the speed and skills of a small man. He is a ...

#1 * Rob Wainwright

Imports

* Rich Adams * Dwight Anderson *

Vincent Askew Vincent Jerome Askew (born February 28, 1966) is an American former professional basketball player who played for nine seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for eight different teams. A 6'6" guard-forward, Askew played college basket ...

* George Banks * John Best * Tim Breaux * James Brewer * Luther Burks * Steve Burtt *

Howard Carter Howard Carter (9 May 18742 March 1939) was a British archaeologist and Egyptologist who discovered the intact tomb of the 18th Dynasty Pharaoh Tutankhamun in November 1922, the best-preserved pharaonic tomb ever found in the Valley of the K ...

* Michael Clarke * Steve Colter *

Dell Demps Delano J. Demps (born February 12, 1970) is an American professional basketball executive and former player who is currently a front office assistant for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Prior to that, he se ...

* Kevin Graham * Stewart Granger *

Derek Grimm William Derek Grimm (born August 3, 1974) is an American professional basketball player. A 6'9" forward from the University of Missouri, Grimm was never drafted by a National Basketball Association (NBA) team but did play for the Sacramento King ...

* Andy Grosvenor * Carl Harris * Joaquin Hawkins * Johnny Jackson *

Askia Jones Askia Rahman Jones (born December 3, 1971) is an American-Venezuelan former professional basketball player. A 6'5" (1.96 m) shooting guard, Jones was not drafted by a National Basketball Association team, but did play in 11 games for the Minnes ...

* Jamal Kendrick *

Jerome Lane Jerome Lane Sr. (born December 4, 1966) is an American former professional basketball player who played six seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Lane played college basketball for the University of Pittsburgh, where he was an All ...

* Terrence Lewis *

Durand Macklin Durand "Rudy" Macklin (born February 19, 1958) is an American former professional basketball player. A 6'7" forward from Louisville, Kentucky, Macklin played at Louisiana State University from 1976 to 1981. In his very first game for LSU, he gra ...

* Jarvis Matthews * Jason Matthews *

Tharon Mayes Tharon Rex Mayes (born September 9, 1968) is an American former professional basketball player. Born in New Haven, Connecticut, USA, he was listed at 6'3" tall and weighed 175 lbs. Career Mayes played collegiate ball with the Florida Stat ...

* Kenny McCleary *

Rodney Monroe Rodney Eugene Monroe (born April 16, 1968) is a retired American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and other leagues. He was selected by the Atlanta Hawks in the second round (30th pick overall) ...

* Michael Morrison * John Morton * Lester Neal *

Bobby Parks Bobby Ray Parks Sr. (November 26, 1961 – March 30, 2013) was an American professional basketball player from Grand Junction, Tennessee. He played for Memphis State University (now the University of Memphis) from 1980-1984 and played inter ...

* Dwayne Randall * Kenny Redfield * Fred Reynolds * Lester Rowe *

Derrick Rowland Derrick Rowland (born June 21, 1959) is a retired American professional basketball player who is the head coach of the Potawatomi Fire. He previously worked as the head coach of the Albany Patroons of The Basketball League (TBL). Born in Brookhav ...

* Dexter Shouse * Calvin Talford *

Calvin Thompson Calvin Thompson (born June 27, 1964) is an American basketball coach and a member of the University of Kansas' 1986 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, 1986 Final Four team. He holds Kansas' record for most consecutive free throws made a ...

Kelvin Upshaw Kelvin Parnell Upshaw (born January 24, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player. He is a 6'2" (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) guard and played competitively at Chicago's Marshall High School, Northeastern Oklahoma A&M Colleg ...

Jameel Watkins Jameel Sharif Watkins (born August 2, 1977) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Wellington Saints of the New Zealand National Basketball League (NBL). He played college basketball for the Georgetown Hoyas durin ...

* Cedric Webber * Dennis Williams * Donald Williams * Kevin Williams * Nantambu Willingham * Westly Wilson * Tremaine Wingfield * Perry Young

Coaches

Ed Ocampo Edgardo Luciano Ocampo (October 5, 1938 – July 29, 1992) was a Filipino basketball player and coach. Early life and education Ocampo was born in Pampanga, Philippines on October 5, 1938. He was one of four children of renowned architect F ...

Joe Lipa Jose "Joe" Lipa, Jr. is a Filipino basketball coach and executive who currently coaching the Terrafirma Dyip's 3x3 team in the PBA 3x3. Lipa formerly coached his alma mater, the University of the Philippines, in the University Athletic Asso ...

* Arlene Rodriguez * Rino Salazar *

Chito Narvasa Andres "Chito" Yuseco Narvasa, Jr. (born October 18, 1956) is a Filipino business executive and former basketball player and coach. He is best known as the ninth commissioner of the Philippine Basketball Association. Personal life He is the son o ...

Perry Ronquillo Perry Ronquillo (born 1965) is a former award-winning PBA coach. He is currently a school teacher in the United States. Playing career He played for De La Salle Green Archers under head coach Derrick Pumaren, and won 2 UAAP championships toge ...

* John Moran *

* Bobby Parks

General Managers

* Ernesto Inocencio * Charlie Favis * Ramon (Mao) Vergel De Dios * Jimmy Ayson * Bobby Villarosa * Bobby Kanapi {{Shell oil Defunct Philippine Basketball Association teams Basketball teams established in 1985 Basketball teams disestablished in 2005 1985 establishments in the Philippines 2005 disestablishments in the Philippines