For San Miguel Beer veteran playmaker Alex Cabagnot, winning a championship never gets old.
It motivates him to work harder – and win more plaudits.
“I know it’s a cliché when people say, ‘we’ve been working so hard’… this group, we’ve been consistently working hard, and I’m glad with the result,” said Cabagnot in between singing few lines of the Queen’s music ‘We are the Champions’ with teammates inside the SMB dugout.
Cabagnot was at his finest in the series-clinching Game 6, leading San Miguel to a 115-91 win over the TNT KaTropa for the PBA Commissioner’s Cup championship Sunday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The 12-year veteran point guard posted triple-double output of 19 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists to become the first local player to have double digits in the three statistical categories in 12 seasons.
The last player to have done that in finals series was former two-time MVP Willie Miller.
Playing then for TNT, Miller posted 25-10-10 during Game 2 of the 2005 Philippine Cup against Barangay Ginebra San Miguel.
That performance by the 6-foot-0 Cabagnot clinched him the PBA Press Corps-CIGNAL Finals MVP in the series where he averaged 20.3 points, eight rebounds, 5.8 assists and 1.3 steals.
The award came a few days after he lost in the Best Player of the Conference (BPC) derby to SMB backcourt partner Chris Ross. According to Cabagnot, the Finals MVP plum weren’t a vindication of his performance – either in the title series or this conference.
“No. It’s not a vindication,” said Cabagnot.
“It wasn’t that close, I saw the tally and he (Ross) deserves it. It’s far from close. Gusto ko lang talaga itong Commissioner’s Cup, 16 years na kasi kaming hindi nana-nalo dito e.”
“And for me, I just want to play consistent all conference. What I did in the first game, ganun din yung performance ko sa last game,” added Cabagnot, who now has won six PBA titles.
As for the season-ending Governors’ Cup, Cabagnot said he is not thinking about a third straight title for Grand Slam feat, saying: “We’ll party a little bit, we’ll enjoy this and hangout.”