Ginebra big man Christian Standhardinger is making waves in the Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup.
He’s the front-runner in the Best Player of the Conference derby and it’s easy to see why.
He’s been putting up monstrous performances in the semi-finals series against San Miguel.
The reigning champions are leading the series 2-0, and Standhardinger is a key reason why.
Standing at 6-foot-9, the Filipino-German player is proving to be an immovable force to deal with, flaunting impressive averages of 32.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 6.0 assists. He’s led his team to just one win away from securing a back-to-back finals trip after ruling the Commissioner’s Cup.
His most recent performance earned him the Cignal Play-PBA Press Corps Player of the Week award for the period March 22-26.
This award comes as no surprise, considering his efficiency on the court, with a shooting accuracy of 65-percent.
While Standhardinger is getting the recognition he deserves, his teammate Scottie Thompson, Meralco’s Aaron Black, and TNT’s Roger Pogoy were also considered for the weekly citation. The award is handed out by a group of print and online media regularly covering the PBA beat.
The four-time champion and last conference’s Finals MVP had it all while playing over 40 minutes per game, carrying a heavy lifting duty for a Ginebra side that is missing the services of vital cogs Japeth Aguilar and LA Tenorio.
Standhardinger is not one to hog the credit, praising the Kings’ refined chemistry instead as the key that further unleashed his game and beefed-up their title retention bid.
“I mean, it’s just about playing good with my guys. I’ve been playing with Justin, Scottie and all those guys for two and half years now and we’re just clicking. That’s what coach Tim actually said, you build on top of each other and eventually, that’s where you go,” said the top overall pick in the 2017 PBA Draft.
“There’s nothing in particular (motivation that fueled his impressive campaign so far). It’s just building on the connection with your teammates.”
