Filipinos make up a third of the Golden State Warriors Facebook fans

Translation: Two Million Facebook fans in the Philippines. Thank you very much, #Dubnation"

PERHAPS more than any other sport, Filipinos love their basketball. No ... they're CRAZY for basketball. And it looks like the professional basketball team that has attracted their loyalty is the Golden State Warriors.

If there is any doubt that the Warriors know who to target on their Facebook page, take a look at these recent posts.

A week ago, the NBA team from Oakland posted the above message on the team's Facebook page in the Philippines: "Two million Facebook fans from the Philippines. Thank you very much, #Dubnation"

With 5.6 million "friends" on Facebook, that means over a third of the Warriors' "likes" are from the Philippines.

Really? That may sound like miscalculation. Are Filipinos that much attuned to social media? The numbers appear to bear it out. According to figures supplied by Facebook, the Warriors’ audience overseas has grown from 45 percent international to 70 percent international in the past two years, measured by “likes” to the team’s home page. And it appears most of them are coming from their Filipino fans.

Two days ago (Jan. 15), the Warriors crack social media team posted this message (to the right) on the team's Facebook page urging their Pilipino-speaking followers to vote for Draymond Green for the All-star team. Two more posts featuring guard tandem Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson with similar messages in Pilipino were entered at the same time.

RELATED: The Golden State Warriors' Asian connection 

The Warriors' secret weapon is 10-year old Filipina American

“The Warriors have transformed themselves from a local and regional sports team into a very large and truly global media entity on Facebook and Instagram,” said Dan Reed, head of global sports partnerships at Facebook. “In the last six months, the team has reached and engaged with more people on Facebook than any professional sports team in the United States.”

Well aware of their fan base and how popular they are in the Philippines, the Warriors  reinforced that relationship last summer when the NBA's MVP, Stephen Curry, visited the Philippines as part of an Asian tour for 

The team followed that up with a Manila visit by five members of the 2015- 2016 Warriors Dance Team, including two of the team's Filipino/ American members, Clarice Guido and Patricia Yabes.

"It's an amazing feeling, coming back and having our community support the Warriors," said Guido, who lived and studied in the Philippines for two years before graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Public Relations and Broadcast Journalism at the University of Oregon.

Yabes has been part of the Dance Team for five seasons and she’s one of the captains in the squad. She is currently in college majoring in Public Relations.

RELATED: Curry's barber preps the star for his trip to the Philippines

The Warriors' Asian/American fans are just as loyal

And just a few days into the season when the Warriors' record-breaking win streak was just beginning, the team's first ethnic night was Filipino Heritage Night. One of the giveaways was a slate-colored t-shirt with the Philippine sunburst emblazoned on the front with the Warrior's symbol of the Bay Bridge superimposed on the design. The team wore the shirt during their pre-game warmup.

Vote for your favorite Golden State Warrior.

Center Andrew Boghut models the latest Filipino Heritage Night t-shirt during warmups.

For more news about Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, read AsAm News.