History, accolades run aplenty at 30th PBA Press Corps Awards
The 30th edition of the PBA Press Corps Annual Awards will be full of history when they conduct it on September 24 at the Novotel Manila.
First on the list will be the presence of former Commissioner Renauld “Sonny” Barrios as he will be the guest of honor and keynote speaker on the awards night, and finally reconnect with his PBA family.
Barrios was the longtime deputy commissioner to the late Emilio “Jun” Bernardino before becoming the main man of Asia's first pay-for-play league in 2008.
He left the league in 2010 but continued to work hand-in-hand with the PBA when he became the executive director of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP). He held the position from that year until his retirement earlier this year.
Barrios, along with the entire Press Corps led by its president Vladi Eduarte of the Abante Group, will recognize the PBA's top performers who made the previous season a memorable one.
Fajardo receives his third citation, Bolick gets his first
The PBA’s only eight-time MVP June Mar Fajardo will etch his name in history books again as he receives his third Order of Merit honor. He has received the same citation in 2018 and 2019.
On the other hand, Robert Bolick will receive his first ever Scoring Champion accolade.
In the PBA’s Season 48 edition, Bolick averaged 25.4 points per game to lead the league in scoring in his first season with NLEX Road Warriors after acquiring him in a blockbuster trade with NorthPort Batang Pier for Don Trollano.
Game of the Season happens in the Finals
Meralco Bolts and San Miguel Beermen will share the spotlight as their Game 6 of the Season 48 Philippine Cup Finals will be honored as the Game of the Season.
It was the game where JMF and Chris Newsome exchanged clutch plays in the end game.
In a game where the Beermen climbed up from a 17-point deficit, the 34-year-old Fajardo made a surprise attempt at the three-point area off a broken play to tie the game at 78-all with 3.3 remaining.
But Meralco’s captain, Chris Newsome buried his trademark hang-time jumper to lead the Bolts to their first-ever PBA championship in franchise history.
Holt and Quinto join the fray
Stephen Holt and Bong Quinto get to share the center stage as they get their first award of the annual event.
Holt, the unanimous winner of Season 48 Rookie of the Year Award, will now lead the All-Rookie Team selection.
He will be joined by Cade Flores of NorthPort, Adrian Nocum of Rain or Shine, Ken Tuffin of Phoenix, and Kemark Carino of Terrafirma.
The 6-foot-4 Fil-Am, was the no. 1 overall pick of Terrafirma last season and as a promising rookie, he led the Dyip to its first playoffs appearance in the last eight years. With that, he was even included in the MVP race and became part of the season’s 2nd Mythical Team.
Meanwhile, Quinto will receive his first Mr. Quality Minutes award - the PBAPC’s version the Sixth Man of the Year.
The Meralco guard edged out SMB’s Jericho Cruz who won the award last year.
Quinto played 39 games last year and he averaged 10.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in 26 minutes for the Bolts.
Other accolades
Lifetime Achievement Award will be handed out for the second time in the 30-year history of the awards night handed out by the men and women who cover the PBA.
Other citations to be given out are the President’s Award, Defensive Player of the Year, and Bogs Adornado Comeback Player of the Year.
There would also be a special tribute to the PBA family members who passed away. They will be honored with a minute of silence and a final buzzer.
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Jimmy Butler and Stephen Curry combined for 75 points to lead the Warriors to victory.
Butler had a game-high 38 points along with seven rebounds, six assists, and three steals. Curry followed with 37 markers, knocking down 6-of-13 from beyond the arc—including two crucial treys in the closing minutes, one near the corner and another after a triple pump fake that thrilled the home crowd. He added eight rebounds, four assists, and one steal.
Gary Payton II and Quentin Post added 12 and 11 points, respectively. Draymond Green dished out a game-high 10 assists while also contributing four points, six rebounds, three steals, and a block before fouling out with 58.6 seconds left in the game.
The Orlando Magic opened the 2024–25 NBA Play-In Tournament with a bang, dismantling the Atlanta Hawks, 120–95, on Wednesday morning, April 16, (Philippine time) at the Kia Center in Orlando.
From the get-go, the Magic set the tone, dominating the first quarter, 32–17. They dropped the second by just a point but still carried a 61–47 lead into halftime.
The Hawks responded in the third canto with a 26–18 run to trim the deficit to just six, 79–73.
Come the fourth and final period, the Magic turned up the heat again, outscoring Atlanta 41–22 to secure the 25-point victory.
Cole Anthony led the charge off the bench with 26 points on 4-of-9 shooting from beyond the arc. He also added three rebounds and five assists.
Wendell Carter Jr. anchored the starting unit with 19 markers, seven boards, and two dimes, while Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner filled up the stat sheets despite their struggles from long range, going a combined 0-of-8 from downtown.
Banchero posted a near triple-double with 17 points, nine rebounds, seven assists, one steal, and one block. Wagner followed with a gritty double-double of 13 markers and 13 boards, along with three dimes, two swipes, and one rejection.
On April 20 (Philippine time), the NBA postseason officially tips off, with 16 teams vying for the coveted 2024–25 NBA Championship.
But before the Playoffs begin, four remaining spots are still up for grabs through the Play-In Tournament.
In the Western Conference, the No. 9 seed Sacramento Kings will take on the No. 10 seed Dallas Mavericks, while the No. 7 seed Golden State Warriors will battle the No. 8 seed Memphis Grizzlies.
The winner of the 9-vs-10 matchup will then face the loser of the 7-vs-8 game for the right to claim the No. 8 seed in the Playoffs, earning a showdown with the No. 1 seed Oklahoma City Thunder.
Meanwhile, the loser of the 9-vs-10 game will be eliminated from contention, while the winner of the 7-vs-8 clash will secure the No. 7 seed and go on to face the No. 2 seed Houston Rockets.
Other first-round matchups in the Western Conference include:
(4) Denver Nuggets vs. (5) LA Clippers
(3) LA Lakers vs. (6) Minnesota Timberwolves
In the Eastern Conference, the Play-In pairings are:
(9) Chicago Bulls vs. (10) Miami Heat
(7) Orlando Magic vs. (8) Atlanta Hawks
The same Play-In format applies: the 9-10 winner plays the 7-8 loser for the final playoff spot. The winner of the 7-8 game becomes the No. 7 seed and will face the No. 2 seed and defending champions, Boston Celtics. The team that claims the No. 8 seed will go up against the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers.