MANILA, Philippines – Another Best Player of the Conference plum has put Barangay Ginebra star Christian Standhardinger in an exclusive company.

Standhardinger claimed his second BPC honors after leading the Gin Kings to the finals of the 2023 PBA Governors’ Cup, becoming just the fourth player to win the award with two different franchises.

Four years since bagging his first BPC with NorthPort in the 2019 Governors’ Cup, Standhardinger joined Eric Menk (Tanduay and Ginebra), Willie Miller (Alaska and TNT), and Calvin Abueva (Alaska and Magnolia) in the club.

The Filipino-German topped the statistical race with an average of 44.2 statistical points (SPs) through the semifinals after posting 23.5 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 5.8 assists.

Asked to carry a heavier load since Japeth Aguilar went down with a knee injury early in the conference, Standhardinger rose to the occasion.

He helped the Gin Kings finish as the third seed with an 8-3 record and dominated in the playoffs against NLEX and San Miguel.

In their unprecedented three-game sweep of his former team Beermen, Standhardinger averaged 26.3 points, 11.7 rebounds, and 6.3 assists to further solidify his case for the BPC.

Standhardinger bested TNT’s Roger Pogoy and San Miguel’s CJ Perez as he became the third Ginebra player to win the award over the last six conferences after teammates Stanley Pringle and Scottie Thompson.

Like Standhardinger, Pogoy steered his squad to the championship round, churning out 19.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.4 steals for the Tropang Giga to garner 34.7 SPs.

Perez, meanwhile, placed behind Standhardinger in the statistical battle with 38.3 SPs built on averages of 20.7 points, 7.1 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 1.7 steals.

Gin Kings stars Thompson and Jamie Malonzo also contended for the BPC with 34.7 SPs and 34.3 SPs, respectively. – Rappler.com