Of his nine PBA titles, Jayson Castro elaborated why his latest championship with the TNT Tropang Giga in the PBA Season 49 Governor's Cup stood out.
While each championship has its own distinct story to tell, Jayson Castro pointed out his latest title with the TNT Tropang Giga stood out among the rest for a couple of reasons.
“Lahat para sa akin sobrang sarap ng feeling nung mga [naunang] championships. Pero ito iba kasi back-to-back and then with Rondae [Hollis-Jefferson] pa and vs. Ginebra pa,” the 38-year-old veteran guard told One News' Play by Play.
Together with teammate Rey Nambatac, Castro looked back on Tropang Giga’s successful Governors' Cup title defense against the crowd favorite squad of the season-opening tournament.
[ALSO READ: In Photos: TNT defends Governors' Cup throne against Ginebra ambush in Game 6 of PBA Finals]
And doing it twice in a row against Justin Brownlee, arguably the greatest import of this generation to play in the PBA, also put the accomplishment in the upper echelon of The Blur’s storied career.
“Isa pang motivation dun is against [Justin] Brownlee, which is napakagaling. ‘Yun 'yung added motivation sa’min kaya siguro nandoon siya sa mga pangatlo, pang-apat [na spot],” he added.
[ALSO READ: Justin Brownlee yearns for rematch with Rondae Hollis-Jefferson after 2nd PBA Finals loss: ‘It hurts a little bit’]
Castro turned back the clock in that six-game conquest with an ageless performance en route copping the Final MVP plum, becoming the oldest winner of the award in league history.
It was also the first time that the Tropang Giga veteran won the award by himself after sharing the same award with another TNT legend Jimmy Alapag way back in the 2010 Fiesta Conference and the 2011 Commissioner's Cup.
[ALSO READ: Jayson Castro finally wins a solo MVP—fitting for the greatest non-GOAT the PBA has ever seen]
But in a typical Jason Castro fashion, he remained humble as ever and noted anybody in the team could have won the award given the balance of their current roster structure.
“Actually mas maraming deserving sa’kin [na manalo ng Finals MVP] pero kung makikita niyo ‘yung composition ng team this conference, lahat pwede [manalo] kasi sobrang balanse talaga ng team,” the five-time Best Player of the Conference.
The Future is Now
Castro welcomed the likes of Nambatac and Calvin Oftana as the new faces of TNT for years to come. The former won his first ever PBA title while the latter claimed his second chip.
[ALSO READ: Calvin Oftana: Second championship with TNT now, Gilas duties next]
“Hindi lang sila yung future, sila na ‘yung present,” the native of Bacolor, Pampanga insisted.
While he provided much of his damage in the Finals, it was Nambatac who shouldered the heavy load early for TNT.
[ALSO READ: Rey Nambatac in cloud nine after fulfilling dream of winning first PBA championship]
And with that, Castro highlighted the importance of the 30-year-old lefty’s arrival to the team that became a vital clog to the Tropang Giga claiming their 10th title overall.
“Sobrang laking bagay and thankful ako na dumating siya [Rey Nambatac] kasi before nung wala siya, heavy minutes pa rin nilalaro ko. Kahit na nandoon na ako sa stage na dapat semifinals or finals ka na talaga naglalaro [ng mabigat],” he spoke.
“Yung transition niya from ibang team to TNT is mabilis so napreserve ng konti [yung minutes ko].”