Though winning the 2018 PBA Rookie of the Year award is a strong possibility, Jason Perkins said that he looks forward more to the upcoming season with the Phoenix Fuel Masters than hoisting the trophy.
The De La Salle University product is set to bag the top rookie honor, as his fellow batchmates Kiefer Ravena and Christian Standhardinger have already been declared ineligible for the race.
“I just don’t have too many feelings about it right now ’cause I’m just focusing on the next season already,” said Perkins, who was the fourth overall pick in the 2017 Rookie Draft.
“That’s the last season, Rookie of the Year is already in the past, so I’m looking forward to the next season.”
Others might say that he won the award due to Standhardinger and Ravena’s ineligibility, but Perkins did have a solid rookie year. He averaged 12.1 points on 51 percent shooting along with 6.58 rebounds and 1.4 assists.
And for Perkins, that is a result of having people around him for help.
“But then again, the people who surround me set me up for a good position – the people I’m with every day: my trainers, my coaches, my teammates… I mean, they help me become better,” said the 26-year-old from Minnesota.
But as much as he doesn’t ‘have too many feelings’ for the award, Perkins still admitted that winning it is a dream for him. Moreover, he would be vindicated if he won – he was projected as a second-rounder in 2017.
“I’m not too athletic, I’m not the fastest or the quickest. I couldn’t really jump high. Even coming out of La Salle, I was seeing all the draft things. I was projected in the second round pa,” said the stocky 6-foot-4 forward.
“But something I won’t doubt about myself is my work ethic. I work very hard and with my work ethic, that gives me high expectations of myself. Even before, people wouldn’t believe in me too much,” Perkins furthered. “But I believe in myself, and the people I’m surrounded by, they also believe in me as well. So Rookie of the Year, I mean – I knew it would be a possibility. Even I have like a notebook I write things in that I want to attract.
“Yeah winning ROY is cool but on the other hand, it’s just another label.”
