Slaughter, proud Green Lancer, thanks UV

CEBU, Philippines - It did not take long for Greg Fuentes-Slaughter to personally convey his gratitude to the institution that laid the bedrock of his blossoming basketball career.

Barely a week after bagging the PBA 'Rookie of the Year' award, the Fil-Am skycraper paid a visit to his beloved alma mater, the University of the Visayas, in a very meaningful way to kick off the 3-Day Cebu Tour of the Barangay Ginebra Kings, his mother team in the pro league.

Slaughter, together with Chris Ellis, Marc Baracael, Emman Monfort and Dylan Ababou, were mobbed by a swarm of Visayanian fans that cheerfully greeted them as they made their way to the center stage for a short meet-and-greet program.

The 7-foot Slaughter said he feels really good to be back at UV, for which he delivered three consecutive championship titles while donning the Green Lancers jersey from 2008-2010 in the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc.

Although he left UV in his fourth year to shift allegiance to the Ateneo Blue Eagles in the UAAP that eventually landed him a spot to the national team, Slaughter said he will always be a Green Lancer by heart.

"It's really feels good to be back in UV because this is where it all started. I had my humble beginnings here. This is my own way of replaying UV a little bit because I could really never repay what UV has done to me."

When asked about his winning the top rookie plum, Slaughter said he is happy but far from being satisfied.

"It's a good individual award but I'm far from being satisfied. My focus really is the championship. That every player's goal, to win a championship," said Slaughter.

During the Leo Awards last July 5 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, Slaughter and Junemar Fajardo, his chief rival from the University of Cebu Webmasters during their CESAFI days, made history as the first ever Cebuano cagers to sweep the top PBA awards. Slaughter snared the ROY accolade, while Fajardo romped off with the coveted MVP trophy.

Who among them will first win a PBA crown remains to be seen. (FREEMAN)