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Leading their respective teams to the 2017 PBA Governors’ Cup Finals, Greg Slaughter and Chris Newsome are seen as favorites to claim the Best Player of the Conference award.
But with another finals meeting coming up, the two are simply unconcerned about the plum, saying that it’s the championship they are chasing after.
“If I score zero and we win, I’ll be happy with that. We always look on winning the championship over individual awards,” said Slaughter, who is currently third in the statistical points race with 32.625 SPs.
“The one thing that’s important for me is making it back to the Finals. Now, my top priority is winning in the Finals. It’s always good to hear that you’re part of the BPC race. That means I’m playing at the level that I expect to be playing at, but the individual accolade is not my top priority at the moment,” said
Newsome, who’s sitting at fourth with his 30.875 SPs.
San Miguel center June Mar Fajardo is still the pacesetter for the highest individual award per conference with 38.455 SPs, followed by TNT guard Jayson Castro who has 33.563 SPs.
But with Fajardo and Castro failing to help their teams reach the Finals, it’s almost certain that the award will be disputed between the two former Ateneo studs, who could take home their first BPC trophy.
Coming back to action this conference, Slaughter is averaging 14.69 points, 8.75 rebounds, 1.69 assists, and 1.63 blocks to be the difference maker for the Gin Kings in this title retention drive.
Meanwhile, Newsome has been the best local talent for the Bolts with his 13.06 markers, 6.25 boards, 5.0 assists, and 1.0 steals to help the team top the eliminations with their 9-2 record in the eliminations.
The Best Player of the Conference will be awarded before Game 3 of the Finals on Wednesday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.