Makati OKBet Kings

Makati OKBet Kings
League	MPBL (2018–present) Filbasket (2021–2022) Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3x3 (formerly)
Founded	2018
History	Makati Skyscrapers (2018) Makati Super Crunch (2018–2021) Makati FSD Blazers (2021) Makati × MNL Kingpin (2022) Makati OKBet Kings (2023–present)
Arena	Makati Coliseum
Location	Makati
Team colors
Main sponsor	OKBet Gaming
Head coach	Don Dulay

The Makati OKBet Kings are a Filipino professional basketball team based in Makati. The team competes in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) as a member of the league's North Division. They are one of four teams based in Metro Manila's Manila District and play their home games at Makati Coliseum.

The team began play in the 2018–19 season as the Makati Skyscrapers and has since gone under multiple names. The team also competed in Filbasket as the AFP–FSD Makati Cavaliers, and in the Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3x3. Since the 2023 season, the team is owned and sponsored by sports betting platform OKBet.

History

2018–2020: Initial success

On April 10, 2018, the City Government of Makati launched the Makati Skyscrapers as one of 16 expansion teams for the MPBL's 2018–19 season. Out of those 16 expansion teams, Makati was the team with the best record, finishing 21–4, only behind the league-leading Bataan Risers. This success, however, cannot be matched in the playoffs, as the second-seeded team in the North were swept by the seventh-seeded Quezon City Capitals in the First Round.

The team was able to continue their winning prowess in the 2019–20 season, finishing 22–8 and claiming the North Division's third seed. In the playoffs, the team first swept Bulacan in the First Round and beat Manila in a close series in the Division Semifinals.

Makati made its first appearance in the Division Finals, and were challenged to face against the defending champion San Juan Knights. After losing to San Juan in game 1 as the visiting team, the team was set to host game 2 at home. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines, game 2 would be moved to San Juan to be played Behind closed doors. Still, Makati persevered and forced a game 3 by a close margin. Later on, the league suspended play as the pandemic continuously affected the country, forcing the Division Finals to be halted after game 2.

2021–2022: Abrupt fallout

One year later, the league continued play under a bio-secure bubble at the Subic Bay Gymnasium. The pandemic brought a financial crisis to the Makati team, which led to a major scuffle as core players decided to not play for the team in the deciding game 3. By game 3, Makati only fielded a five-man roster, which caused San Juan to eliminate Makati by a wide 77-point margin.

The fallout of Makati continued on as the team failed to make the playoffs of the 2021 Invitational, and as the 2022 season came around, the team only captured two wins in the 21-game season, making them the worst team in the North Division and missing the playoffs for the first time.

2023: Returning to the winning column

Prior to the 2023 season, gaming company and MPBL title sponsor OKBet acquired the franchise of the team. The team was completely rebuilt as the team went back to where they were three years ago, once again claiming the third seed in the North with a record of 21–7, which includes wins against Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, and Batangas City.

In the First Round, the team will once again face against the San Juan Knights, the team that last eliminated them in 2021.

Team identity

The team first went by the Makati Skyscrapers in its inaugural season, alluding to the numerous tall buildings across the city. Mid-season, the team's name was changed to the Makati Super Crunch as part of a sponsorship with Prifood Corporation, and has since then taken on the name of its title sponsor.

For most of its time, Makati has used a color scheme that uses black as the primary color. In 2023, blue was made the primary color in its uniforms.

Season-by-season records

This is a list of seasons completed by Makati. For the full season-by-season history, see List of Makati OKBet Kings seasons.

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, PCT = Winning percentage

Home arenas

Unlike another Metro Manila-based teams, the Makati franchise has had a rough history with playing within its home locality. In the 2018–19 season, the team played all of its home games at Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig. To date, they are the only active MPBL team to have had a designated home arena outside of its home locality.

In the 2019–20 season, the team began using the Makati Coliseum on a regular basis, but concerns regarding the venue forced the team to play elsewhere during the 2020 playoffs. Since then, the team has yet to return to Makati Coliseum.

Current roster

Notable players