Jericho Cruz

In this Philippine name, the middle name or maternal family name is Setubal and the surname or paternal family name is Cruz.

Jericho Xavier Setubal Cruz (born October 11, 1990) is a Filipino-Guamanian professional basketball player for the San Miguel Beermen of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

Jericho Cruz

Cruz with Rain or Shine in 2016
No. 39 – San Miguel Beermen
Position	Shooting guard
League	PBA
Personal information
Born	(1990-10-11) October 11, 1990 (age 34) Pasig, Philippines
Nationality	Filipino / Guamanian / Northern Mariana Islander
Listed height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Listed weight	190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High school	Marianas High School
College	RTU Adamson
PBA draft	2014: 1st round, 9th overall pick
Selected by the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters
Playing career	2014–present
Career history
2014–2018	Rain or Shine Elasto Painters
2018–2019	TNT KaTropa
2019–2022	NLEX Road Warriors
2022–present	San Miguel Beermen
Career highlights and awards
3× PBA champion (2016 Commissioner's, 2022 Philippine, 2023–24 Commissioner's) 3× PBA All-Star (2016–2018) PBA Most Improved Player (2016) PBA All-Rookie Team (2015) 2× PBA Mr. Quality Minutes (2016, 2023)
Medals Men's Basketball Representing  Philippines Southeast Asian Games 2013 Naypyidaw Team Men's Basketball Representing  Guam Micronesian Games 2010 Koror National Team

Early life

Cruz was born in Pasig in Metro Manila, Philippines but would spend most of his childhood in Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands.^[1]

Prior to 2004, he would play basketball for the G-Rollers of Garapan.^[2][3]

He would attend the Marianas High School for his secondary education.^[4]

High school and college career

Cruz decided to try his luck in the Philippines where he initially played for Rizal Technological University in 2010, the same year when the Blue Thunder ruled the State Colleges and Universities Athletic Association.

He was also a member of RTU's two-time runner up squad in the National Capital Region Athletic Association where the Blue Thunder lost to Olivarez College and Colegio de Sta. Monica in 2010 and 2011. He was a member of the Mythical Team in 2011.

He was spotted by then Adamson Soaring Falcons coach Leo Austria while playing in a tournament in Bacolod. He averaged 10.1 points per game in his first tour of duty with the Falcons in the 2011 FilOil Flying V Preseason tournament then averaged 12.3 markers per outing in his rookie year with Adamson in the 2012 UAAP season.^[5]

He elected to forgo his final year with the Falcons and applied for the 2014 PBA draft.

Professional career

Cruz was drafted 9th overall by Rain or Shine in the 2014 PBA draft.^[6]

On December 5, 2014, he registered his first breakout game against Alaska, finishing 16 points on 6-for-7 shooting.^[7] Two days later, he suffered a broken foot during their game against Ginebra and was out for the rest of the All-Filipino conference.^[8] He has since returned to active play in the 2015 Commissioner's Cup.

He was recognized during the 2016 PBA Leo Awards as he bagged the Most Improved Player trophy.^[9]

On February 15, 2018, he was traded to TNT KaTropa in exchange for rookie Sidney Onwubere, Kris Rosales, and 2018 first round pick.^[10]

On June 10, 2019, Cruz was traded to the NLEX Road Warriors in a three-team trade involving NLEX, TNT, and NorthPort Batang Pier.^[11] On December 31, 2021, he became an unrestricted free agent, but he eventually re-signed a two-month deal with NLEX on January 20, 2022.^[12]

On March 1, 2022, he became an unrestricted free agent again after not re-signing with NLEX.^[13] He immediately signed a three-year contract with the San Miguel Beermen on the same day.^[14] He declined offers from two teams of the Japanese B.League preferring to stay with his family in the Philippines.^[4]

Four months thereafter Cruz set his career-high 30 points in SMB's tough win over TNT.^[15]

PBA career statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

As of the end of 2023–24 season^[16]

Season-by-season averages

Year	Team	GP	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2014–15	Rain or Shine	40	17.0	.421	.237	.861	2.4	1.4	.7	.0	6.6
2015–16	Rain or Shine	53	24.4	.483	.367	.748	3.2	2.1	.8	.1	12.5
2016–17	Rain or Shine	38	23.8	.396	.306	.735	4.5	2.4	1.0	.1	9.8
2017–18	Rain or Shine	27	20.7	.415	.355	.710	2.9	2.8	1.3	.1	8.0
	TNT
2019	TNT	25	23.3	.372	.270	.719	3.8	3.4	.9	—	9.4
	NLEX
2020	NLEX	10	25.9	.516	.383	.696	2.5	3.8	1.3	.2	13.2
2021	NLEX	26	24.6	.432	.256	.698	3.3	3.0	1.3	.1	9.5
	San Miguel
2022–23	San Miguel	56	24.8	.440	.322	.718	2.6	2.6	.8	.1	11.3
2023–24	San Miguel	39	24.9	.424	.313	.760	2.8	1.9	.7	.1	10.6
Career		314	22.9	.433	.316	.747	3.1	2.4	.9	.1	10.1

National team career

Cruz was a part of the Philippines team that won the gold medal at the 2013 Southeast Asian Games basketball tournament in Naypyidaw, Myanmar.

He has also represented the Northern Mariana Islands at the youth level, playing in the 2008 FIBA Oceania Youth Tournament leading CNMI to a sixth-place finish and in the process, was voted as one of the tournament's Top 5 players.^[5] At the 2010 Micronesian Games, Cruz played for the Guam national team and won a gold medal.^[17] In January 2020, Cruz received a call-up to play for Guam at the 2022 FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers.^[18][19]

References

1. "Jericho Cruz set for Guam duty after PBA championship". Philippine Daily Inquirer. February 15, 2024. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
2. Dayao, Jun (September 26, 2014). "Supportive mom helps Jericho reach dreams". Saipan Tribune. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
3. "Jericho Cruz tells youth to never give up". Marianas Variety News & Views. December 26, 2019. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
4. Rabago, Mark (March 2, 2022). "Jericho signs with winningest PBA team". Saipan Tribune. Archived from the original on September 15, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
5. Dayao, Jun (April 21, 2014). "Jericho eyes PBA stint". Saipan Tribune. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved January 11, 2016.
6. "2014 PBA Draft Results". InterAksyon. August 24, 2014. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 11, 2016.
7. "Rookie Jericho Cruz comes up big as Rain or Shine leapfrogs Alaska, moves into second place". InterAksyon. Archived from the original on December 9, 2014. Retrieved December 5, 2014.
8. Joble, Rey (December 10, 2014). "Rain or Shine rookie Jericho Cruz out for the conference after fracturing ankle". InterAksyon. Archived from the original on March 26, 2016. Retrieved January 11, 2016.
9. "Jericho Cruz named as 2016 Most Improved Player". PinoyBoxBreak. Archived from the original on October 18, 2016. Retrieved October 18, 2016.
10. Leongson, Randolph (February 15, 2018). "PBA greenlights Jericho Cruz trade to TNT". Inquirer. Archived from the original on February 15, 2018. Retrieved February 15, 2018.
11. "Jericho Cruz joins NLEX as PBA approves 3-team trade". June 10, 2019. Archived from the original on December 28, 2021. Retrieved January 20, 2022.
12. Terrado, Reuben (January 20, 2022). "Jericho Cruz to finish season with NLEX before dealing with free agency". Spin.ph. Archived from the original on January 20, 2022. Retrieved January 20, 2022.
13. Lozada, Bong (February 25, 2022). "PBA: Free agent Jericho Cruz says goodbye to NLEX". Inquirer. Archived from the original on March 1, 2022. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
14. Ramos, Gerry (March 1, 2022). "Jericho Cruz move from NLEX official as he signs with San Miguel". Spin.ph. Archived from the original on March 1, 2022. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
15. Magallon, Reynald (July 7, 2022). "Cruz shines with career-best outing, powers SMB's romp of TNT". Manila Bulletin. Archived from the original on July 7, 2022. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
16. "Jericho Cruz Player Profile, San Miguel Beermen - RealGM". basketball.realgm.com. Archived from the original on April 16, 2022. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
17. "2010 Micronesian Games". GameDay. Archived from the original on September 8, 2024. Retrieved September 9, 2024.
18. Giongco, Mark (January 23, 2020). "Jericho Cruz gets Guam call-up for Fiba Asia Cup qualifiers". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Archived from the original on January 23, 2020. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
19. Terrado, Reuben (November 10, 2022). "Jericho Cruz to play for Guam in Fiba Asia Cup 2025 pre-qualifiers". Sports Interactive Network Philippines. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.