By Ivan Stewart Saldajeno (PNA)
MANILA — Just when you think Junemar Fajardo will dominate the stats race for the Philippine Basketball Association’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) award, someone sneaked into the top.
NorthPort’s Stanley Pringle is the surprise leader in the statistical points (SP) for the said plum.
Pringle garnered 35.5 SPs after 33 games up to the elimination round of the season-ending Governors’ Cup, way ahead of San Miguel’s Fajardo, who got 33.2 after 46 games.
The mere fact that he played sparingly in his two games back after a shin injury greatly affected his cause.
However, the other aspects in the MVP selection process, that is, the votes from the media, players, and the PBA Commissioner’s Office, could still turn the tides, especially that Fajardo won the Best Player of the Conference awards in the first two conferences. Including the Beermen’s quarterfinal match-up against the Alaska Aces, Fajardo played in 47 of their 57 total games, making him eligible to vie for an unprecedented fifth MVP plum.
Rounding out the Top 5 are Ginebra’s Japeth Aguilar (third with 32.9 SPs) and Scottie Thompson (fifth with 30.8); and NorthPort’s Sean Anthony (fourth with 31.3).
The five players are cinches for the Mythical First Team.
Phoenix’s Matt Wright, San Miguel’s Alex Cabagnot, Arwind Santos, and Marcio Lassiter; and Alaska’s Vic Manuel, on the other hand, are on track of making the Mythical Second Team as they ranked sixth to 10th respectively in the stats race.
