Newly minted PBA BPC Slaughter aims to uplift those with injuries

MANILA, Philippines — Greg Slaughter hopes his recent feat would inspire people — especially the ones who are nursing the same injury.

The Ginebra big man won his first-ever PBA Best Player of the Conference award on Sunday night prior to pulling the rug on the Meralco Bolts for a 2-0 lead in the PBA Governors’ Cup finals.

“I just hope it’s inspiring to people who got major injuries like that,” he said. “When I first got hurt, it was kind of disappointing for me because it’s my first game back. It took a long time and I was separated from the team for a while.”

Slaughter — who has been penciled over-and-over as the only center to give San Miguel Beer’s June Mar Fajardo a run for his money — hurt his right knee in September 2016. It took him almost a year before donning the Gin Kings jersey anew.

But when he did, he helped shore up Ginebra’s front line and breathed life into the Kings’ title-retention bid.

With Slaugter playing alongside Justin Brownlee and Japeth Aguilar, the Kings surely look formidable. They won eight of their 11 elimination round games, beat the Grand Slam-hunting Beermen, and then frustrated perennial contenders TNT KaTropa.

"I hope it just shows that you can always come back stronger from a setback,” Slaughter said of his milestone.

The United States-born cager, who spent a third of his life in Cebu, finished with only three points on his memorable night.

But he was quick to make a clarification on that.

"It’s just how the game went tonight,” Slaughter said. "I was still able to contribute on the defensive end. It’s not about any numbers, it’s just about getting the win for the team.”

After all, his eyes are locked on to something else.

“Individual award or not, we want to win the championship. That’s just been our goal since the beginning of the conference,” he closed.

Slaughter and company will shoot for a third straight win on Wednesday, again at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.