MANY think that Jayson Castro is enjoying the prime and peak of his career in the Philippine Basketball Association. He still doesn’t think so, though.
After winning his fourth Best Player of the Conference award last Sunday, Castro insisted that he still has a lot left in the tank, hungry to improve himself even more.
“It’s always good to be recognized and win Best Player, pero I think I still have a lot to improve pa,” said the humble Castro. “Ang ganda ng naging start namin tapos hindi kami umabot ng finals so for me, kailangan ko pa mag-improve and also ‘yung team namin as a whole.”
While June Mar Fajardo challenged him for the plum, Castro was the obvious choice to be the Best Player of the Conference for this 2016 PBA Governors’ Cup after dominating the tournament from the start up until the semifinals before TNT KaTropa suffered a shocking upset at the hands of Meralco.
Even if most people already consider him as a top-notch talent, not only in the country but also in the international scene, Castro is still not satisfied. He continues to aim for the stars.
“Marami pa rin na challenges sa PBA. ‘Yun ang motivation ko,” said Castro. “Ayaw kong makuntento na and gusto ko pang makatulong sa team at makabalik kami sa finals and also, every season, maraming magaling na players na pumapasok sa PBA so dapat mag-improve pa rin ako ng laro ko.”
Considered as the best point guard in Asia, Castro was named as one of the 40 Greatest Players in PBA history.
The only thing missing now for the prolific spitfire of TNT KaTropa is a Most Valuable Player award, something that has eluded him as Fajardo has been dominating the league since he came in and is expected to win a record third straight plum this coming Friday in the annual Leo Awards.
Castro’s four BPC awards is second most in league history, tied with Fajardo as well, just one behind Danny Ildefonso.
Meralco’s Allen Durham took home the Bobby Parks Best Import of the Conference award after edging out Barangay Ginebra reinforcement Justin Brownlee.
Durham helped the Bolts reach their first-ever finals as a franchise.