After some amateur stints, Dela Cruz began his 10-year professional career as the 2nd overall pick of the
Tanduay Rhum Makers in the
1985 PBA Draft. He would later leave Tanduay and play for two other teams in separate years. Dela Cruz was a four-time PBA champion, played for the Philippine flag, and won gold twice in the
Southeast Asian Games. Dela Cruz was a rough player and, according to him,
Jaworski and
Rudy Distrito can be likened to him as "enforcers" in the league. ==References==