WINNING the MVP award in the 2022 PBA D-League Aspirants' Cup should be sweet, but it's the least of Juan Gomez de Liaño's concerns.
For the University of the Philippines guard, leading Marinerong Pilipino to the championship is his utmost priority.
Juan Gomez de Liano on potential D-League MVP award
"Honestly, that's not my goal for this tournament. If ever man na manalo ako ng MVP, that's just a bonus for me. But my goal really here is to help my teammates," he said.
"I'm glad that we made the Finals now. Two more games, so we're gonna focus on that."
Gomez de Liaño has been impressive in his run this conference, averaging 18.4 points on 27.4-percent shooting from deep, alongside 8.4 rebounds, 6.3 assists, and 1.2 steals to lead the Skippers.
But what brings more joy to him is how Marinerong Pilipino met everyone's expectations and made it to the Finals after a hardfought semifinals series against Apex Fuel-San Sebastian.
"I think it was really all in our team mindset. I give credit to my teammates," said the 6-foot guard. "They gave me a lot of confidence especially in those crucial times."
Gomez de Liaño took charge in the last three minutes, making two crucial treys as he powered the Skippers to a 69-64 Game Three win on Wednesday.
It capped off his solid all-around performance as he once again stuffed the stat sheet with his 23 points, eight rebounds, and six assists in the clincher.
"Just having the right mindset coming into this do-or-die game, sinasabi ko nga lagi sa kanila to not waste the opportunity because we worked so hard to get to this point. Sayang naman pag pinakawalan lang namin, so we're glad that we got the win and focus na kami sa Finals," he said.
The job, however, still isn't over as EcoOil-La Salle stands in Marinerong Pilipino's way of its title aspirations.
And you bet, Gomez de Liaño will go all out just to make those dreams a reality.
"I really wanna give one championship to Marinero knowing that they haven't won any yet," he said.