By MARK REY MONTEJO
San Miguel star June Mar Fajardo is on track to winning his record-extending eighth Most Valuable Player plum while Terrafirma’s Stephen Holt is coming close to bagging the Rookie of the Year award in the PBA Season 48.
Fajardo, who is fresh from his FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament stint in Riga Latvia, accumulated 42.1 statistical points to take the commanding lead in the MVP race ahead of Ginebra’s Christian Standhardinger (37.8), San Miguel’s CJ Perez (37.7), NorthPort’s Arvin Tolentino (35.9) and TNT’s Calvin Oftana (35.4).
The 10-time PBA champion averaged 17.8 points, league’s best 13.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 0.7 steals, and 1.7 blocks per contest.
After ruling the Commissioner’s Cup, Fajardo led the Beermen to their second straight conference finals appearance and met the Meralco Bolts in the Philippine Cup best-of-seven championship series.
The Bolts, however, won in six games for their first-ever franchise title, with Newsome being named the Finals MVP.
Meanwhile, Holt tallied 34.1 SPs, far better than NorthPort’s Cade Flores (23.3), Rain or Shine’s Adrian Nocum (21.8), Phoenix Super LPG’s Ken Tuffin (21.5) and Blackwater’s Christian David (17.8).
The Fil-American cager averaged 17.0 points, 6.9 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 1.9 steals.
Holt anchored the Dyip’s improbable run in the previous conference highlighted by a Game 1 win over the Beermen in the Philippine Cup quarterfinals.
NLEX’s Enoch Valdez (17.4), Converge’s Deschon Winston (16.5) and Bryan Santos (16.4), Terrafirma’s Kemark Carino (16.344), and Meralco’s Brandon Bates (16.340) completed the top 10 in the rookie list.
