The team began play as the Basilan Steel in the 2018–19 MPBL season as part of the league's national expansion. The name "Steel" is based on the fact that Basilan comes from the word besih, meaning steel.
On November 27, 2024, it was announced that the team will return to the MPBL in 2025, where they will remain as the only team based in the Bangsamoro region. It is unknown if the team will continue using their current moniker, revert back to Steel, or use a new one entirely.
History
2018–2021: First MPBL stint
The Basilan Steel were founded as one of sixteen expansion teams for the MPBL's 2018–19 season, and were one of five expansion teams from the Visayas and Mindanao. The team was originally going to be called the Basilan Shooters, but was changed since "shooters" may be associated with violence.[1] Their application was accepted by the league in May 2018 who reasoned that they want to show the beauty of Basilan "through basketball".[2][3]
In the 2018–19 season, the team finished with a 7–18 record, giving the team the second-worst record in the South Division. In the 2019–20 season, Basilan won 20 of the 30 games that season, awarding them with the division's third seed. After defeating Iloilo and then Bacoor City, the team reached the division finals against the Davao Occidental Tigers.
South Division finals fallout
The series was tied 1-1 before the COVID-19 pandemic suspended the playoffs for one year. When the league resumed play with a bubble in Subic, Basilan had some of its players tested positive for COVID-19, thus ruling them out of the bubble, putting an abrupt end to their season.[4] Davao Occidental would go on to advance to the national finals and eventually win the championship.
2021: Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup
In 2021, Basilan moved to the Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup as one of its inaugural teams, going by the Basilan Peace Riders, marking the team's first professional stint.[5] After going undefeated in the Mindanao leg of the 1st Conference, Basilan are granted an instant berth into the Mindanao finals against the fourth-seeded Roxas Vanguards. The Peace Riders swept the Vanguards to advance to the First Conference finals against KCS Computer Specialist – Mandaue. In the best-of-five series, Basilan beat Manduae 3–0 to win their first-ever league championship.
2021: Brief return to the MPBL
The team returned for the 2021 Invitational, going by the Basilan Jumbo Plastic. The team was given the group's first seed as a reward for winning the Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup 1st Conference. After defeating Mindoro and Pasig, the team made it to the winner-takes-all finals against the Nueva Ecija Rice Vanguards. With 1.9 seconds remaining in overtime and the score tied at 80, Philip Manalang made the championship-winning buzzer beater to give Basilan the MPBL Invitational title.[6]
2022: Pilipinas Super League
In 2022, the Basilan Steel transferred yet again, this time to the Pilipinas Super League alongside the Davao Occidental Tigers. In the 2022 Pearl of the Orient Cup, Basilan finished 8–6 and ranked 4th. In the semifinals, the Basilan faced against first-seeded Davao Occidental but was swept in the series. The team then eventually lost the third-place game against second-seeded Roxas Vanguards.
2025–present: Revival and full-time return to the MPBL
On November 27, 2024, in an interview with Snow Badua on SPIN.ph, Sumisip mayor Julz Hataman announced the revival of the Basilan franchise and its full-time return to the MPBL. Hataman stated in the interview that the organization is creating a roster that could compete against some of the league's top contenders. The organization also aimed at hiring Mac Tan as head coach, who led the Batangas City Athletics to the inaugural MPBL title in 2018.[7]
Team identity
Logo as the Basilan Steel
Name
The team was initially going to go by the Basilan Shooters but management decided to change the name due to its violent connotations. The name "Basilan Steel" was derived from the idea that name of the team's home province came from the Yakan word "Besih" which means steel. Basilan was known for its abundant iron ore deposits which was used for sword and other weapons by early Filipinos.[8]
Logo
The team's first logo consists of a Moro in traditional Yakan garments and a kalis. An indigenous sword with a wavy blade takes the shape of the "I" in "BASILAN". The logo was designed by Arjay Hije under Chronos Athletics. The logo was abandoned when the team changed their name to Basilan Peace Riders. The logo was used again for Basilan's men's volleyball team in 2021.
Color scheme
The team has always used a red and black color scheme, but initially, it was going to be gold and black. According to Hije, black represents the perception of Basilan as a war-torn arena, while gold represented Basilan as a place where people "can live joyfully and harmoniously".[8] Gold would be eventually used for the Steel Spikers' logo.
