(c) PBA Media Bureau
Calvin Abueva was one of the most polarizing players in the PBA today. That is because of his Filipino-friendly playing style and antics in the court.
So, they called him The Beast!
Being compared to him then is not that easy. That was the case for the #1 pick of the 2018 draft, CJ Perez.
He played with the same non-stop energy and aggression that a lot of Filipinos adored about Calvin.
Now that they are in the same league, comparing the two will be much easier.
Last Wednesday, the two played against each other as Phoenix notched their third straight W against Columbian.
In that game, Calvin was the better player, producing 16 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals. Perez only managed 10 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals.
When asked about the comparison, Calvin said that if you are going to compare the two of them, it is still distant (malayo pa).
Is that true?
When I look at the numbers, it is closer than what Calvin thinks.
In the rookie season of Calvin, where he outplayed June Mar Fajardo to win the Rookie of the Year that season, his statline was 11.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.0 steal, 0.7 block, 39.9% FG and 29.5% 3FG per game.
In the first four games of Perez, he averaged 16.0 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 2.0 steals, 0.5 blocks, 36% FG and 25% 3FG.
As you can see, both have positives and negatives against each other. Perez is averaging more points, assists and steals but is behind on four other areas.
Add the fact that he will surely have an up-and-down Philippine Cup and that in the latter two conferences, his production could go down because of the presence of imports and that will make it hard to argue that CJ could be better.
Efficiency is his most glaring issue but that can increase as his teammates get better and with him improving his outside shot.
He played with the same non-stop energy and aggression that a lot of Filipinos adored about Calvin.
Now that they are in the same league, comparing the two will be much easier.
Last Wednesday, the two played against each other as Phoenix notched their third straight W against Columbian.
In that game, Calvin was the better player, producing 16 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals. Perez only managed 10 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals.
When asked about the comparison, Calvin said that if you are going to compare the two of them, it is still distant (malayo pa).
Is that true?
When I look at the numbers, it is closer than what Calvin thinks.
In the rookie season of Calvin, where he outplayed June Mar Fajardo to win the Rookie of the Year that season, his statline was 11.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.0 steal, 0.7 block, 39.9% FG and 29.5% 3FG per game.
In the first four games of Perez, he averaged 16.0 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 2.0 steals, 0.5 blocks, 36% FG and 25% 3FG.
As you can see, both have positives and negatives against each other. Perez is averaging more points, assists and steals but is behind on four other areas.
Add the fact that he will surely have an up-and-down Philippine Cup and that in the latter two conferences, his production could go down because of the presence of imports and that will make it hard to argue that CJ could be better.
Efficiency is his most glaring issue but that can increase as his teammates get better and with him improving his outside shot.
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