MANILA – Robert Bolick headlines the top contenders for the PBA Governors' Cup Best Player of the Conference (BPC) as he leads the statistical points (SP) race.
In a copy of the SP race update obtained by the Philippine News Agency on Wednesday, NorthPort's spitfire guard is way ahead with 39.9 average SPs per game during the elimination round.
Phoenix's Matthew Wright is second, but he only accumulated 34.9 average SPs during the first phase of the Governors' Cup.
Bolick led the locals in points, assists, and steals with 21.8, 8.8, and 2.2, respectively.
However, what could keep him from winning the BPC award is the fact that the Batang Pier have already been eliminated from playoff contention after losing to the Fuel Masters on Sunday night in the play-in for the eighth seed in the quarterfinals.
This opens an opportunity for Wright and even TNT's Mikey Williams and NLEX's Kevin Alas to overtake Bolick as the playoffs progress.
Williams, the BPC during the Philippine Cup, is third with 33.9 average SPs, first among rookies, while Alas is fourth with 33.55.
NorthPort's Arwind Santos, who led the locals for the conference in blocks with 1.8, is fifth with 33.5, Ginebra's Scottie Thompson is sixth with 33.3, and San Miguel's June Mar Fajardo, the rebound leader among locals with 11.2, is seventh with 32.5.
Rounding the Top 10 are Magnolia's Paul Lee and Mark Barroca (eighth and ninth with 30.9 and 30 SPs, respectively), and NorthPort's Jamie Malonzo (10th with 29.8).
Meanwhile, Shabazz Muhammad leads the pack in the SP race for the Best Import award.
The San Miguel swingman, the 14th pick of the 2013 NBA Draft, is way ahead with 61 average SPs, and this is despite playing only three games as a replacement to Orlando Johnson.
NLEX's KJ McDaniels and Magnolia's Mike Harris, who played for the entire elimination round, are far second and third with 52.9 and 52.4 SPs, respectively.
Anchored by his 57-point bomb on March 5 against Meralco, the most since Al Thornton and Tyler Wilkerson went on a scoring showdown in 2016 that saw Thornton dropping 69 and Wilkerson making 58, Muhammad led the league in scoring for the Governors' Cup with 39 points a game.
He also led everyone in rebounds with 19 a night.
McDaniels, meanwhile, is number one in blocks with 2.8 an outing while sharing the honors with Meralco's Tony Bishop as the top stealers among the imports with 1.5 a game
However, McDaniels might miss his shot at taking the Best Import award as he flew back to the United States to take care of his wife and their newborn child.
Cameron Clark will take his place as the Road Warriors battle the Alaska Aces in a quarterfinal duel later Wednesday.
On the other hand, Bishop and Rain or Shine's Henry Walker led the imports in assists with 4.2 a game.
Bishop is fifth in the SP race with 51.45 average SPs, just behind Blackwater's Shawn Glover, who had 51.5 after the eliminations. (PNA)
