POY Erram admitted he didn't expect to emerge as one of the top five players in the last PBA Philippine Cup bubble.
The 31-year-old TnT Tropang Giga center was surprised to clinch one of the three berths reserved for big men in the Elite Five category given out during the PBA Awards Night on Sunday.
He shared the honor with Barangay Ginebra’s Japeth Aguilar and Calvin Abueva of Phoenix, while the guard positions went to Matthew Wright of Phoenix and Barangay Ginebra’s Stanley Pringle, who was adjudged Best Player of the Conference.
“Nagulat ako. Hindi ko ini-expect na napasama pa ako considering na maraming deserving na mga player,” said Erram when rasked about the personal award shortly after the event held at the TV5 studios in Mandaluyong.
It was the first Mythical Team selection for Erram, although he’s been named to the Mythical Second Team in 2018 while still with Blackwater.
And to think it was only his first conference with TnT, which finished runner-up to all-Filipino champion Barangay Ginebra.
“Sobrang saya dahil na-recognize ng mga tao yung ginagawa ko (para sa team),” said Erram, who nonetheless, admitted several of his shortcomings with the Tropang Giga.
He said a second Elite Five unit should have been given out as Erram noted there were other outstanding players in the bubble who were left out such as TnT teammates Roger Pogoy and Ray Parks Jr.
But the personal award inspires Erram to persevere more in the coming 46th season of the league.
“Yung naman ang goal natin every season, every year, to become a much better person and a much better player,” said the former Defensive Player of the Year. “Sa akin mismo dapat manggagaling kung paano ko aayusin ang sarili ko.”
Along that line, the big man out of Ateneo also hopes to complete TnT's unfinished business in the bubble.
“Aside sa mga individual (awards), siyempre ang goal talaga is to win a championship,” he said,
In the 22 games he played in his first season with TnT, Erram averaged 11.8 points, 9.7 rebounds, 1.6 assists, and 1.1 block shots.
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