MANILA, 14 December — At the tender age of 25, San Miguel’s Danny Ildefonso is already on the verge of greatness.
He made sure of that when he bagged the coveted Most Valuable Player (MVP) award in the Philippine Basketball Association for the second straight year to complete what could well be the most dominant year by a PBA player ever.
And, yes, the 6-foot-5 pride of Urdaneta, Pangasinan, is now standing at the top of the world yet again.
The prized slotman won the award in runaway fashion against four of his teammates to carve his name in the niche of league history as only the third player to win it for two straight seasons, following William “Bogs” Adornado and Alvin Patrimonio.
Adornado did the trick in 1975-76, while Patrimonio won it back-to-back in 1993 and 1994.
Nobody had come near the total point output Ildefonso accumulated in the season to run away with the most prestigious award in a player’s career.
Indeed, the 1998 Rookie of the Year awardee won it in the most lopsided derby ever since the league’s inception in 1975.
Ildefonso, a four-year veteran from National University, has collected a total of 11,129 points accumulated through statistical points, players and media votes and nod of the five-man PBA awards committee to win the MVP plum.
But unlike last year where he engaged Seigle in a closely-fought battle for the award, Ildefonso was a runaway winner this time.
He beat teammates Danny Seigle, who saw little action in the Governor’s Cup due to a back injury, with 1,951, or roughly 9,200 points off Ildefonso’s output.
Olsen Racela finished third with 1,762 and Nick Belasco, who had 1,269, was fourth.
Red Bull’s Davonn Harp was the only non-Beerman who crashed into the top five with 1,090 points.
Interestingly, he also became the sixth player to win the award at least twice.
The night he received the trophy during the Annual Awards that preceded Game 3 of the best-of-seven championship series between San Miguel and Sta. Lucia at the Araneta Coliseum was particularly memorable for Ildefonso.
He won the award just a day after celebrating his 25th birthday and he became the youngest player to win it twice in his budding, checkered career.
Adornado was 25 and six months when he achieved the feat in 1978. Four-time MVP Ramon Fernandez, Abet Guidaben and Patrimonio and Benjie Paras won their second MVP awards in their 30s.
Actually, it was a double celebration for the power-posting center after also clinching his fifth straight Best Player of the Conference award, becoming the first player to sweep the trophy in a season.
He was surprised to win the Best Player of the Conference trophy, specially since Sta Lucia Realty’s Dennis Espino had been the favorite to win the award.
Winning it the third straight time this season was unprecedented and the sweep was even more remarkable when added to the last two BPC awards he won last season.
He bested Espino, who was leading in the statistical department, by the slimmest of margins.
Espino lost out in the race as Ildefonso amassed 2,055 points to the Sta.
Lucia ace’s 1,827 in what could well be one of the most tightly-contested races this league has seen in the league’s 26-year history.
Ildefonso got more votes from the media and the five-man committee to beat Espino.
It was a win Ildefonso didn’t expect, but votes from the media carried him past Espino, who topped the statistical points race, as well as the player balloting.
Curiously, Ildefonso came in fourth in the Governor’s Cup statistical points race behind Espino, Aquino and Hatfield.
Overall, Ildefonso won his fifth straight conference best player citation since the 2000 Commissioner’s Cup, an award which no other cager has more than three.
Seigle wound up second to his teammate again as in last year but helped underscore San Miguel’s dominance of the league as he, Ildefonso and Olsen Racela took three of the five slots on the Mythical First Team.
The other two slots went to Espino and Alaska’s Ali Peek.
Making up the Second Team were Purefoods’ Noy Castillo, Alaska’s Kenneth Duremdes, San Miguel’s Nick Belasco, Pop’s Rudy Hatfield and Red Bull’s Davonn Harp.
The year proved fruitful for Ildefonso, who has one championship ring, earned two more trips to the championship, including the current Governors’ Cup, and the all-star MVP on the side.
Mark Caguioa, the sensational Ginebra guard who was largely credited for his help in steering the league’s most popular team to a surprise runner-up finish in the All-Filipino Cup this year, was hands-down choice for Rookie of the Year. He beat Shell’s Mike Hrabak and Alaska’s John Arigo.
Caguioa garnered a total of 11,508 points to Hrabak’s 3,194. Arigo was a distant third with 2,109 points.
Castillo edged Belasco for Most Improved Player after finally showing the talent that was hyped during his rookie season. The Purefoods gunner was responsible for the Hotdogs’ stand in the Commissioner’s Cup, where they survived the absence of starting center Andy Seigle to barge into the semifinals and even take eventual champion Red Bull to a deciding fifth game.
Sta Lucia Realty’s Paolo Mendoza was originally the hottest pick for the Most Improved Player award, but his lack of playing years made him ineligible for the plum.
Shell’s Chris Jackson, Espino, Realtors teammate Marlou Aquino, Purefoods Rey Evangelista and Talk ‘N Text’s Patrick Fran were voted to All-Defensive team.
For the sixth consecutive year, Jackson topped the All-Defensive team, tying Alvin Teng at fifth all-time for the most number of defensive citations.
Evangelista also won the Sportsmanship Award which is given to players for their exemplary behavior on and off the court. He beat Sta. Lucia Realty’s guard Gerard Francisco.
Also awarded during the game was the Best Player of the Conference and Best Import Awards.
Damian Owens, the multi-talented Realtors reinforcement, won convincingly the Best Import Award and beat the high-scoring Lamont Strothers, Shell’s Askia Jones and Pop Cola’s Rossell Ellis.
Strothers placed second in the award for the second straight year.
The award was handed out by seven-time best import awardee Bobby Parks.
