Archie Concepcion hopes that winning the Most Valuable Player honors in the recent PBA Season 48 Draft Combine will help elevate his stock.
The MPBL guard won the award after helping Team B5-NLEX beat Team A2-Phoenix in the mini-tournament’s finale, 78-71. He finished with 14 points.
“Sana po. Sa awa ng Diyos,” he said moments after the prospects’ showcase wrapped up at the Gatorade Hoops Center in Mandaluyong on Wednesday.
Concepcion admitted that winning the award served as motivation for him to become better known, especially by the coaches in attendance.
“Isa sa mga motibasyon ko ay ‘pag nagpakita ako at nakuha ko ‘yung ganoong award, siguro kahit papaano, makikilala ako,” he said.
By doing so, he became the second Pampanga native to win the award after Encho Serrano, who earned Draft Combine MVP honors last year. The La Salle product was eventually picked 19th overall by the Fuel Masters.
Serrano happens to be his teammate in the MPBL, and the former Arellano Chief’s advice is valuable now that Concepcion is trying his luck in the big league.
“Sabi niya lang po sa akin, pag-igihan lang po. At, tiwala lang,” he said.
Serving as an extra push for Concepcion was the absence of potential first-round picks in the Combine, such as the highly-touted Stephen Holt and University of the Philippines product Zavier Lucero, among others.
For him, it became an opportunity for the “underrated” aspirants to seize the moment and show that they’re worthy of attention too.
“Opo, may mga top picks na wala rito. ‘Yung mga underrated po, kumbaga, nagbigay sila ng kanilang best dito,” he said.
“Sana po nakita ng mga nag-scout.”
