Beau Belga

Beau Belga

Belga in 2014
No. 30 – Rain or Shine Elasto Painters
Position	Center / Power forward
League	PBA
Personal information
Born	(1986-11-30) November 30, 1986 (age 35) Gubat, Sorsogon, Philippines
Nationality	Filipino
Listed height	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight	280 lb (127 kg)
Career information
College	Philippine Christian University
PBA draft	2008 Round: 1 / Pick: 7th overall
Selected by the Purefoods Tender Juicy Giants
Playing career	2008–present
Coaching career	2020–present
Career history
As player:
2008–2009	Purefoods Tender Juicy Giants
2009–2010	Air21 Express
2010–2011	Meralco Bolts
2011–present	Rain or Shine Elasto Painters
As coach:
2020–present	UST Growling Tigers (assistant)
Career highlights and awards
2× PBA champion (2012 Governors', 2016 Commissioner's) 3× PBA All-Star (2013–2015) 2× PBA All-Star Week Obstacle Challenge champion (2018, 2019) NCAA Philippines champion (2004)
Medals Men's Basketball Representing  Philippines Southeast Asian Games 2007 Nakhon Ratchasima Team FIBA Asia Cup 2014 Wuhan Team

Beau Michael Vincent Esparrago Belga (born November 30, 1986) is a Filipino professional basketball player^[1] for the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters of the Philippine Basketball Association. He is also an assistant coach for the UST Growling Tigers of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP).^[2]

Early life[]

Belga was born and raised in Gubat, Sorsogon and is the eldest among the three siblings. His father was a family driver while his mother was a housewife. At a young age, he helped his grandmother sell balut, penoy, and other goods. He finished his high school education in Sorsogon. As a kid, he was very thin and was often bullied; as a way of escape, he focused his attention on basketball.

College career[]

He decided to go to Manila and study at Philippine Christian University. He was recruited to play for the PCU Dolphins by the school's swimming coach while he was playing billiards with his friends. While at PCU, he, along with future PBA stars Gabby Espinas and Jayson Castro, helped the team win its first ever NCAA title against host school University of Perpetual Help Altas in 2004.

Professional career[]

He was the seventh overall draft pick by Purefoods in 2008 before being traded to Burger King. He found his niche as a basketball player while playing for coach Yeng Guiao's Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, where he was known as one of the league's toughest players. While with Rain or Shine, he also became teammates with J.R. Quiñahan, and together they formed a duo in the low block, called the Extra Rice, Inc., owing to their weight and huge appetite.

PBA career statistics[]

As of the end of 2020 season^[3][4]

Season-by-season averages[]

National team career[]

In 2013, Belga was added to the Gilas Pilipinas training pool that competed in the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship, and was considered the "13th man", since he was the last man cut from the 12-man national team roster.^[5] In 2014, he was included in the Gilas roster that played for the 2014 FIBA Asia Cup in Wuhan, China, 2014 FIBA World Cup in Spain, and 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.^[6] In 2018, he will represent the Rain or Shine-backed Gilas Pilipinas in the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia.

References[]