After spending the first few years of her professional career in Europe, second-generation hooper Gabi Bade finally found her way home to the Philippines.
Born and raised in California, playing basketball in the Philippines was a full circle moment moment for Bade, realizing the dream of her father Chris.
Despite already seeing action with Gilas Pilipinas, which included a gold-medal run at the SEA Games, Gabi was still largely based overseas, playing in countries like Cyprus and Romania after she wrapped up her collegiate career in the US.
But with the Philippines now having its first-ever women’s basketball professional league, Bade is among the stars of the inaugural Women’s Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League season.
Truly finding her local basketball home, Gabi had retraced her father’s steps to suit up with the Solar Home-Pangasinan Suns.
“I think it’s great being able to just play here for the first time,” Gabi told One Sports in an exclusive interview.
Her father Chris was a player in the PBA in the 1990s, where he was selected 12th overall in the 1994 PBA Rookie Draft.
He played two seasons in the PBA before joining the now-defunct Metropolitan Basketball Association, seeing action for the Laguna Lakers and the Socsargen Marlins.
With Gabi now taking his father’s place in the halls of Philippine professional hoops, Chris is nothing but supportive of his youngest daughter by being a fixture in WMPBL games.
Former PBA player Chris Bade is a regular to the WMPBL games of his daughter Gabi. Photo: WMPBL
“Having my dad here, because he’s retired now, so having him support me [and] especially my mom, too, I feel like I have that backbone, that great support system,” she said.
Runs in the family
Sports truly runs in the Bade family, with Gabi’s older sister Lee also competing in her own right as a mixed martial artist.
Growing up in a household that encouraged competitiveness, Gabi savors being able to relate more to her father and her sister in ways that she never imagined.
Understanding each other, the three athletes are able to push and support each other.
“We’re a very competitive family,” Gabi said.
“Everybody’s just competitive individually [and] at the same time, we support each other.”
Gabi adds that the support also transcends outside of basketball, with herself and her father being able to resonate with Lee’s MMA career, especially now that the latter is dealing with an ACL injury.
“Despite, you know, me and my sister are playing different sports, we're always texting each other. We're always supporting each other. Like, good luck with your fight, good luck with your game, they're always there,” Gabi said.
“Even if my sister's back in California, a thousand miles away. She's always there to FaceTime me, message me. But yeah, I'm just grateful for them,” she continued.
The bigger picture
But for Gabi, following in her father’s footsteps into Philippine basketball isn’t the only thing that drives her.
Rather, being part of Philippine basketball history in the first-ever professional women’s league in the country, there is a more ambitious goal in mind for Gabi – and that is to work towards the continued growth of Philippine women’s basketball.
Having been exposed to multiple cultures of basketball during her career, Gabi said that Filipinos have what it takes, and the WMPBL is taking things in the right direction.
“I'm grateful for the opportunity to be here, to see women's basketball grow,” she said.
“It's very very... It's a privilege to see women's basketball grow here. We have a lot of talented players, actually, great players, you know that are rising,” she added.
Gabi’s reflection also came with the realization that despite her relative advantage in terms of experience of playing professionally, the WMPBL is a different challenge altogether, only strengthening the point that Filipina ballers do have game.
Forced to work for her points against equally-capable opponents, Gabi knows that she had to bring her A-game in the WMPBL.
“I'm not one of the best. I think I have a lot of work to do. That just comes with practice [and] getting back into the gym and work,” she said.
For Flag & Country
The road doesn’t end for Gabi in the WMPBL, as she also welcomes any chance to once again represent the country through Gilas Pilipinas.
Providing veteran experience to Gilas Women, Gabi last played for the national team in the Jones Cup back in 2023.
With the Southeast Asian Games coming to Thailand in December 2025, Gabi is ever closer to reprising her role with the national team.
Not one to back down from a challenge, the Solar Home Suns bruiser believes that heeding the country’s call will be a no-brainer, especially as the Philippines aims to regain the basketball gold in the biennial tournament after settling for silver in Cambodia 2023.
“I'll be very grateful if I get the opportunity [of] playing again for Gilas. You know, it's a once in a lifetime opportunity to represent your country,” said Gabi.
“It's that pride and honor so whenever my name is called up, I'll definitely say yes.”
A return to Gilas would be a tremendous opportunity for Bade, but for now, she’s relishing her initial WMPBL stint with Pangasinan.
As the WMPBL navigates the growing pains of being a new league, Bade enjoys working with teammates who share the same commitment to hard work.
“I think it's great being able to play with these kinds of teammates because they're sponges. You know, they're able to grasp their learning experience, especially with me,” she said.
“I'm more of an experienced player, I've played in Europe, I've played with Gilas. So, my experience is a little higher but at the same time, I'm still motivated, I'm still giving them confidence, still helping them learn, and still know that I'm here for them as a leader.”
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Luisa Morales is a sports writer with a special interest in promoting women’s sports.
Her coverage highlights include the UAAP, PVL, Southeast Asian Games, and the FIBA World Cup. She also follows Alex Eala, the Philippine women’s national football team, and mixed martial arts.