December 08, 2024

Jayson Castro finally wins a solo MVP—fitting for the greatest non-GOAT the PBA has ever seen

Jayson Castro finally wins a solo MVP—fitting for the greatest non-GOAT the PBA has ever seen
Jayson Castro finally a Finals MVP again after 13 years. Art by Mitzi Solano, Photos by RM Chua

Jayson Castro is quite the interesting player.

By living in the same era as the indefatigable June Mar Fajardo, he will never be the GOAT of his generation.

By playing with Jimmy Alapag, he might not even be the greatest player of the only PBA team he’s ever known.

But make no mistake about it, Jayson Castro is an all-time great. The greatest ka-Tropa ever? Probably? Arguably?

Look at his career and you’ll be inclined to say “most definitely.”

 

 

For one, no other Phone Pal can match Castro’s team achievements, now being a nine-time champion.

No other Tropang Texter can match his individual accolades too. Actually, very few PBA players in general can even come close.

But because he was never “Most Valuable” it somehow hurts his case. It really shouldn’t.

 

Controlled chaos

Castro is a TNT lifer, but the pick used to select him in the PBA Draft all those years ago didn’t even belong to Talk ’N Text.

In a rather interesting twist of fate, PBA flagships Talk ’N Text and San Miguel engaged in a rare trade, one that sent former no. 1 pick and future two-time Best Player of the Conference Jay Washington to the Beermen.

The Tropang Texters received the no. 3 pick, which they used to take a future five-time BPC winner in Jayson Castro.

Put in a team with a prime Mac Cardona and a prime Jimmy Alapag, and part of a rookie class that had an ace in Jared Dillinger, Castro was a speed boost employed by coach Chot Reyes.

 

 

As he came into his own in the Tropang Texters’ PBA dynasty that would come just a couple of years after he was drafted, Castro made up one half of Talk ’N Text’s cheat code to close out wins and hoist championships.

“The Blur” as he was affectionately nicknamed, Castro mastered the controlled chaos that allowed Talk ’N Text to repeatedly bamboozle teams. Castro was a perfect compliment to Alapag and the Mighty Mouse’s relative calmness on the court, both for the Tropang Texters and Gilas Pilipinas.

Speaking of Gilas, Castro assumed full superstardom by being named Asia’s best point guard not once, but twice.

His work from 2015 onwards, with Alapag already riding into the sunset, only further proved that Jayson Castro was the man all along.

 

Controlling the chaos

In his later years, as the top speed started to become diminished, Castro mostly returned to a more complimentary role, a role that he started his career with and a role that he admittedly enjoys.

Nevertheless, Castro remained a master of control for TNT, with his new role reflecting the immense trust his team places in him.

As personal accolades became fewer and farther between — with his fifth BPC award coming back in 2019 — Castro shifted his focus to increasing his title count.

Again paired with a dynamo in one Mikey Williams, Castro added two more titles to his list. But while Mikey got the glamor, the Blur proved that he remained the team’s foundation.

Consistency and being clutch became the name of Castro’s game, and as TNT moved on from Mikey and in turn gave Jayson a younger guard to help mentor in Rey Nambatac, the tables turned.

Castro was no longer the force that inspires chaos, instead his control of the chaos around him was crucial in adding a third PBA championship to his count since 2021.

Nambatac, RR Pogoy, and Calvin Oftana all would have made legitimate cases for Finals MVP as TNT again vanquished Ginebra for the PBA Governors’ Cup title.

But while all three had cases to not win Finals MVP, Jayson Castro did not.

 

Master at work

The only MVPs Jayson Castro has ever won in his PBA career were that of the Finals variety.

The first two he shared with Alapag, which only seem fitting especially since they both came at the height of TNT’s peak as the dominant force in the league.

His latest one, the first one he won on his own, came some 13 years later when he was actually more like Jimmy: clutch and in control.

In many ways, Castro’s third Finals MVP is also fitting. The PBA’s most unassuming superstar of this era got his MVP in the most unassuming ways.

Jayson Castro is quite the interesting player. He might never be the GOAT, he will most likely no longer win MVP.

 

 

But in his evolution from being an agent of chaos to being a master at it, “The Blur” became the undisputed greatest of one of the greater PBA teams ever.

That could be more than enough for Jayson Castro — and, in many ways, very on brand. The greatest non-GOAT the PBA will ever see. Unassuming. Fitting.

 

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