Quinton Brian Heruela (born April 13, 1989) is a Filipino-American basketball player for the

TNT Tropang Giga The TNT (cellular service), TNT Tropang Giga is a professional basketball team currently owned by Smart Communications, a subsidiary of the PLDT, Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT), playing in the Philippine Basketball Associat ...

of the

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 ...

(PBA). He was the 26th pick in the

2014 PBA draft The Gatorade 2014 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Rookie Draft was an event which allowed teams to draft players from the amateur ranks. The event was held at Midtown Atrium, Robinsons Place Manila on August 24, 2014. Draft lottery The ...

by Blackwater.

College and amateur career

Heruela played for the University of Cebu Webmasters in the

Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. The Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (CESAFI) is a sports and academic association of 14 schools, colleges and universities in Cebu, Philippines. The CESAFI was established in 2001. History Before the creation of the CESAFI, there was alre ...

(CESAFI). He won back to back championships in 2010 and 2011. He played in the 2011 Universiade. Before entering the PBA, he played in the

PBA D-League The PBA Developmental League, or PBA D-League, is the Philippine Basketball Association's official minor league basketball organization. History The PBA D-League was conceptualized after the collapse of the proposed merger between the Philip ...

. In 2014, he even became one of the candidates for the Aspirants' Cup MVP award by posting near triple-double numbers.

Professional career

Blackwater Elite (2014–2015)

Heruela was drafted by the

Blackwater Elite The Blackwater Bossing is a professional basketball team owned by Ever Bilena, Inc. that is playing in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) beginning in the 2014–2015 season. The franchise began as one of the founding teams in the PB ...

. He started his rookie season on Blackwater's reserve list. After getting cut from the team, he returned to the D-League. Blackwater gave him a call after that, and he returned to the team. In his first game, he had five points, seven rebounds, five assists, two blocks, a steal and seven turnovers in over 30 minutes of action. He scored 19 points in a loss to

Barako Bull Energy The Barako Bull Energy were a Philippine Basketball Association team that began in 2002 as the FedEx Express. From its first season until 2005, the team was dubbed as the FedEx Express before changing to Air21 Express. From the 2009 PBA Fiest ...

. In the 2015 Commissioner's Cup, Heruela led the team's locals in scoring and assists, which made him one of the biggest "steals" in the 2014 draft. He also had a career-high 27 points in a win against the

KIA Carnival The Kia Carnival ( ko, 기아 카니발) is a minivan manufactured by Kia since 1998. It is marketed globally under various nameplates — prominently as the Kia Sedona — which is now unused in favor of the Carnival. The first generat ...

that conference. He also participated in the Obstacle Challenge during the 2015 All-Star Weekend.

San Miguel Beermen (2015–2018)

On July 2, 2015, Brian Heruela was traded by the

to the

in exchange for

Carlo Lastimosa Carlo Dan Lastimosa (born September 3, 1990) is a Filipino professional basketball player for Pasig City MCW Sports of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL). He was drafted 20th overall by the Barako Bull in the 2013 PBA draft. Ear ...

. However, on August 25, 2015, Heruela was traded by the Barako Bull Energy to the

San Miguel Beermen The San Miguel Beermen are a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). It is one of three PBA clubs owned by the San Miguel Corporation group of companies along with the Magnolia Hotshots and Barangay Ginebra ...

for

Jeric Fortuna Jeric Marco Gray Fortuna (born November 25, 1991) is a Filipino professional basketball player who last played for the Manila Stars of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL). He was drafted 14th overall by the Barako Bull Energy in t ...

, reuniting him with his former college teammate at

University of Cebu The University of Cebu (UC) ( ceb, Unibersidad sa Sugbo; fil, Pamantasan ng Cebu) is a private, non-sectarian, coeducational basic and higher education institution in Cebu City, Philippines. It was founded in 1964 offering preschool, grade schoo ...

June Mar Fajardo June Mar Sotto Fajardo (; born November 17, 1989) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the San Miguel Beermen of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He is also known by his nickname "The Kraken” for his extraordinary size ...

. He became the backup point guard in SMB's rotation. He still found ways to contribute, such as when he got a rare start in a win over the

GlobalPort Batang Pier The NorthPort Batang Pier is a Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) team that first played in the 2012–13 PBA season. The team took over the franchise of the Powerade Tigers in 2012 after it was sold to Sultan 900 Capital, Inc. Besides Nor ...

in the 2016–17 Philippine Cup. In the 2017 Commissioner's Cup Finals, he was instrumental in limiting TNT's

Jayson Castro Jayson Castro William (born June 30, 1986) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the TNT Tropang Giga of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). His moniker is "The Blur" for his speed. He played for the Philippine Christian Un ...

. He won 2 championships that season. In a 2017–18 Philippine Cup win over Globalport, Heruela had a career-high six steals and 17 points as he stepped up with guard

Alex Cabagnot Alexander Cabagnot Jr. (born December 8, 1982) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the Terrafirma Dyip of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He plays the point guard position. Alex once had a rivalry with Mark Caguioa f ...

out with a foot injury. He, along with the SMB bench, also stepped up in the Finals, as SMB eventually won its 4th straight All-Filipino Cup.

TNT KaTropa (2018–2019)

On December 19, 2018, Heruela, along with

David Semerad David John David Semerad (born April 25, 1991) is an Australian-born Filipino professional basketball player who last played for the Blackwater Bossing of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He is also a model and TV host. His twin broth ...

and a 2020 1st round pick, was traded to the

TNT Katropa The TNT (cellular service), TNT Tropang Giga is a professional basketball team currently owned by Smart Communications, a subsidiary of the PLDT, Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT), playing in the Philippine Basketball Associat ...

in exchange for

Terrence Romeo Terrence Bill Vitanzos Romeo (born March 16, 1992) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the San Miguel Beermen of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He plays both the point guard and shooting guard positions. He played ...

. He debuted with 14 points and two steals in a loss to the Beermen. In the 2019 Commissioner's Cup playoffs, he defended Ginebra's star scorer

Stanley Pringle Stanley Wayne Andres Pringle Jr. (born March 5, 1987) is a Filipino-American professional basketball player for the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). Pringle played college basketball for Pasco–Hernand ...

while contributing with his three-point shooting on offense to help TNT advance to the

Finals Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

. In Game 1 of the Finals, which was against his former team SMB, he had a highlight block on San Miguel import

Chris McCullough Christopher A. McCullough (born February 5, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Formosa Taishin Dreamers of the P. League+. Prior to attending Syracuse University, McCullough went to Salisbury School, Brewster Academy, and ...

, and helped TNT win that game. In Game 2 however, he missed two crucial free throws that allowed the Beermen to send the game to overtime where they won. TNT eventually lost the Finals in six games. He revealed that he injured his right shoulder during the Finals, which caused him to miss some games the following conference.

Return to Blackwater Elite (2019)

On October 19, 2019, he was traded back to the

in exchange for

Michael DiGregorio Michael Vincent DiGregorio (born December 12, 1991) is a Filipino-Italian professional basketball player for the Blackwater Bossing of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He was drafted 35th overall by the Mahindra Enforcer in the 2015 PB ...

. He debuted with three assists in a loss to the

Rain or Shine Elasto Painters 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 ...

Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters (2020)

On January 16, 2020, the Elite traded Heruela to the

Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters The Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters is a professional basketball team owned by Phoenix Petroleum Philippines, Inc., which debuted in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) in the 2016 Commissioner's Cup. The franchise began after the comp ...

in exchange for Ron Dennison. He then signed a one-year deal with them. He had 15 points and seven rebounds to go along with his 4 out of 6 output from threes in a win over his former team Blackwater.

Return to TNT (2021–present)

On February 23, 2021, Heruela, along with three future draft picks, was traded to the Alaska Aces for

Vic Manuel ឴ Victorino Aranas Manuel (born June 18, 1987) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the San Miguel Beermen of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). Amateur career Manuel possessed tremendous athleticism and agility uncommon ...

and two draft picks. However, he didn't sign with Alaska and signed with TNT instead, making a return to the franchise he last played for in 2019. In Game 3 of the 2021 Philippine Cup Finals against the

Magnolia Hotshots The Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots, or simply known as the Magnolia Hotshots, are a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association. The team is owned by San Miguel Food and Beverage, Inc., a subsidiary of San Migue ...

, he was called for fouling Paul Lee on a three-point attempt, despite not being near Lee's shooting hand or landing spot. Magnolia eventually won that game. The referee who called the foul on him was not allowed to officiate again the rest of the Finals. TNT still won the Philippine Cup, their sixth All-Filipino title. The following season, TNT reached the All-Filipino Finals once again, but TNT failed to defend its title, losing it to the Beermen. Heruela then missed the Governors' Cup due to a foot injury with "cartilage defects".

PBA career statistics

''As of the end of 2021 season''

Season-by-season averages

, - , align=left , , align=left , Blackwater , 26 , , 33.2 , , .431 , , .203 , , .617 , , 4.9 , , 5.2 , , 1.5 , , .3 , , 10.6 , - , align=left , , align=left , San Miguel , 37 , , 7.4 , , .337 , , .300 , , .625 , , 1.1 , , 1.0 , , .4 , , .0 , , 2.0 , - , align=left , , align=left , San Miguel , 40 , , 8.5 , , .361 , , .257 , , .684 , , 1.4 , , .9 , , .4 , , .1 , , 2.1 , - , align=left , , align=left , San Miguel , 47 , , 9.8 , , .380 , , .319 , , .759 , , 1.7 , , 1.4 , , .6 , , .2 , , 3.2 , - , align=left rowspan=2, , align=left ,

TNT Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reagen ...

, rowspan=2, 44 , , rowspan=2, 20.3 , , rowspan=2, .347 , , rowspan=2, .286 , , rowspan=2, .558 , , rowspan=2, 2.7 , , rowspan=2, 2.3 , , rowspan=2, 1.1 , , rowspan=2, .2 , , rowspan=2, 4.6 , - , align=left , Blackwater , - , align=left , , align=left ,

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

, 17 , , 19.9 , , .398 , , .341 , , .524 , , 2.9 , , 2.1 , , .8 , , .2 , , 5.4 , - , align=left , , align=left ,

, 36 , , 13.8 , , .367 , , .313 , , .250 , , 1.8 , , 1.1 , , .7 , , .1 , , 2.8 , -class=sortbottom , align=center colspan=2 , Career , 247 , , 14.8 , , .380 , , .287 , , .608 , , 2.2 , , 1.8 , , .8 , , .1 , , 4.0

Personal life

Heruela is known in the PBA for his hairstyles. While he was still with SMB, he wore

cornrows Cornrows are a traditional style of braids in which the hair is braided very close to the scalp, using an underhand, upward motion to make a continuous, raised row. Cornrows are often done in simple, straight lines, as the term implies, but they ...

, with his teammates also joining in on the trend. During the 2019 Commissioner's Cup Finals, he drew comparisons to Toronto guard

Fred VanVleet Fredderick Edmund VanVleet Sr. (born February 25, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A point guard, VanVleet played college basketball for Wichita State ...

, not just for their similar play and impacts on their teams, but also because of their similar beards.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heruela, Brian 1989 births American men's basketball players Filipino people of American descent Living people Basketball players from Cebu Basketball players from Texas Blackwater Bossing draft picks Blackwater Bossing players Cebuano people Filipino men's basketball players Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters players Point guards San Miguel Beermen players Sportspeople from Cebu City Sportspeople from Texas TNT Tropang Giga players UC Webmasters basketball players