Jayson Castro William (born June 30, 1986) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the

TNT Tropang Giga The TNT (cellular service), TNT Tropang Giga is a professional basketball team currently owned by Smart Communications, a subsidiary of the PLDT, Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT), playing in the Philippine Basketball Associat ...

of the

Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines composed of twelve company-branded franchised teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia and is the se ...

(PBA). His moniker is "The Blur" for his speed. He played for the

Philippine Christian University The Philippine Christian University (PCU) is a private, Protestant coeducational basic and higher education institution located in Ermita, Manila, Philippines. It was founded in 1946 through the initiatives of the laymen of the Evangelical Assoc ...

Dolphins A dolphin is an aquatic mammal within the infraorder Cetacea. Dolphin species belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontoporiidae (t ...

in the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Philippine Basketball League The Philippine Basketball League (PBL) was a commercial semi-professional basketball league in the Philippines. The league was composed of several commercial teams with several collegiate and provincial stars. History The PBL was formed on Ma ...

teams Hapee-PCU Teeth Protectors and Harbour Centre Batang Pier.

Amateur career

High school career

Originally from neighboring Betis,

Guagua Guagua, officially the Municipality of Guagua ( pam, Balen ning Guagua; tl, Bayan ng Guagua), is a 1st class municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of Pampanga, Philippines. According to the 2020 cens ...

, Castro was a part of the high school basketball team of Don Honorio Ventura State University in

Bacolor Bacolor, officially the Municipality of Bacolor ( pam, Balen ning Bakúlud; tgl, Bayan ng Bacolor), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Pampanga, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 48,066 people. Bacolor ...

. Castro was the only player from his batch to play college basketball, with

(PCU) in Manila.

College career

Castro first played for the PCU Dolphins in the NCAA at the

2003 season 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

as a 5'10"

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the five Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position. Point guards are expected to run t ...

. The Dolphins were not able to clinch a Final Four berth, finishing with a 5-9 record. Things changed on the 2004 season in which PCU was able to make a turnaround with Castro,

Gabby Espinas Gabriel Espinas (born January 3, 1982) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the Batang Kankaloo – Caloocan of the Pilipinas Super League. A 6'4" forward, he was drafted fifth overall by the Beermen in the 2006 PBA draft. He made ...

and Robert Sanz at the helm, denying Letran a back-to-back championship run. Holding the twice to beat advantage, the Dolphins needed an extra game that went into

overtime Overtime is the amount of time someone works beyond normal working hours. The term is also used for the pay received for this time. Normal hours may be determined in several ways: *by custom (what is considered healthy or reasonable by society), ...

to enter the finals. In the championship series against the

University of Perpetual Help The University of Perpetual Help System is a network of two universities consisting of nine campuses in the Philippines. History Established in 1968 by Dr. Jose de Guzman Tamayo and his wife Dra. Josefina Laperal Tamayo as Perpetual Help Hospita ...

, the Dolphins swept the best-of-3 finals series to win their first NCAA championship. Castro played second fiddle to both Espinas who won the League MVP award and Sanz, who won the Finals MVP award. In the 2005 season, the Dolphins went into another Final Four appearance, and they made short work of Mapúa on their way to the Finals where they met Letran once again. The Dolphins won Game 1 behind Castro's game-high 20 points. The Dolphins were beaten by Letran in the next two games as Castro got cold. In 2006 season, Castro gave out an all-NCAA team performance as he was named as one of the Mythical 5 members; he and Espinas led PCU to a third consecutive Finals appearance this time against

San Beda College es, Universidad de San Beda , image = San Beda University seal.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = University Seal , latin_name = Universitas Sancti Bedæ , former_names ...

. Despite Castro scoring a team-high 16 points, the Dolphins were blown out by the Red Lions on Game 1. Castro's teammates stepped up on Game 2 to force a deciding game. In the third game, with PCU trailing by a point in the dying seconds, Castro passed off the game-winning shot to Beau Belga who missed his jumper to lose the championship for PCU. The Dolphins would be suspended the following year after irregularities on their high school team, thus ending Castro's collegiate career.

Philippine Basketball League

Addict Mobile

After a deserving NCAA 2004 Champions and part of the Mythical 5. The Fil-Am Jayson Castro William was headed to the AMP Mobile Phone team, which he was a backup to LA Tenorio. His PCU teammates Gabby Espinas and Rob Sanz, gave their worth talents to remain in the Philippine Basketball League. They were joined by Ateneo Blue Eagles team, composed of

Paolo Bugia Ramon Paolo Vlajar Bugia (born January 19, 1981) is a Filipino former professional basketball player and executive who currently serves as the team manager for the Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). H ...

LA Tenorio Lewis Alfred Vasquez Tenorio (born July 9, 1984) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He is also an assistant coach for the Letran Knights of the Philip ...

Magnum Membrere Benedicto "Magnum" L. Membrere III (born July 20, 1982 in Pangasinan) is a Filipino former professional basketball player in the Philippine Basketball Association who is former team manager for TNT Tropang Giga. He was drafted nineteenth overall ...

, and company.

Harbour Centre Port Masters

In this time of Jayson Castro's life, he rose to the occasion. Even if he was still a backup to LA Tenorio, he played consistently. He was with Mac Cardona and his former PCU teammates

, Rob Sanz, Beau Belga, and Joel Solis. Castro was slowly becoming a premiere amateur point guard during this time.

Hapee PCU Teeth Masters

He then transferred to Hapee PCU. He remained with the team for a season with Gabby Espinas, Rob Sanz, Joel Solis, Mark Moreño and others. Unfortunately, the team was on a slump making them cellar dwellers on the standings. Hapee PCU had a disastrous season.

Hapee-PCU Teeth Sparklers

After PCU's championship, Lamoiyan Corporation sponsored the core of that team to participate in the PBL as the Hapee-PCU Teeth Sparklers. The Sparklers entered the Finals against the Harbour Centre Batang Pier and were defeated. Hapee made several more playoff runs but were beaten either by Harbour Centre or by Toyota-Otis (ironically mostly composed of Letran players). In the midst of Jayson Castro's third season at Hapee, he was acquired by

Junel Baculi Edmundo "Junel" Baculi is a Filipino head basketball coach who formerly coached GlobalPort Batang Pier in the PBA. In the PBL, he also coached the Hapee-PCU Dolphins and had many titles. Prior to coaching, Baculi played varsity basketball for t ...

, his coach in PCU, to join the RP team with

Marvin Cruz Marvin Lu Cruz (born December 31, 1985) is a Filipino free agent professional basketball player who lastly played for the GlobalPort Batang Pier of the Philippine Basketball Association. He is the older brother of Mark L. Cruz that also plays a ...

JC Intal John Christopher Antonio "JC" Intal (born November 18, 1983) is a Filipino former professional basketball player. He last played for the Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He is married to television ...

Ryan Araña Ryan T. Araña (born March 23, 1984) is a Filipino professional basketball player who last played for the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). Araña played college basketball at the De La Salle Universit ...

, Chad Alonzo, and Beau Belga, with 2 imports. They claimed the SEABA 2006 club championship crown. In the middle of the 2nd season and 3rd season, he was again acquired. He was with Gabe Norwood, Beau Belga, Chad Alonzo, Eugene Tan, Patrick Cabahug, and Jeff Chan. They reached the finals but were unlucky as they lost the SEABA 2007 club championship crown. Castro was an MVP contender during this time.

Return to Harbour Centre

When PCU was suspended, Castro transferred to Harbour Centre and won 2 championships with them. After 2 conferences of sterling performances, Castro was named as the PBL 2007 Most Valuable Player. In the next season, Castro and the Batang Pier met Hapee, this time led by Filipino-American

Gabe Norwood Gabriel Daniel Viloria Norwood (born February 9, 1985) is a Filipino-American professional basketball player for the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He played college basketball at George Mason Uni ...

in both of the season's finals and beat them. Castro was adjudged as the MVP anew, beating Norwood. Proving himself to be a deserving grandslam MVP, he edged

Reed Juntilla Reed Friar Juntilla (born June 22, 1984) is a Filipino professional basketball player who is currently a free agent. Juntilla last played for the Zamboanga Valientes of the Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup. Career Juntilla played for Mail and More C ...

Ken Bono Karl Kenneth Odani Bono (born June 19, 1984) is a Filipino basketball player who last played for the TNT KaTropa of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He played collegiate basketball for the Adamson Soaring Falcons in the University At ...

, and Norwood in the race.

Professional career

Singapore Slingers

Castro signed with the

Singapore Slingers The Singapore Slingers is a Singaporean professional basketball team that currently compete in the ASEAN Basketball League. The Slingers were known as the JobStreet.com Singapore Slingers between 2009 and 2014, due to sponsorship ties with Job ...

during a televised ceremony in May 2008, and was supposed to be the first

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

player in the National Basketball League, Australia's top-level professional basketball competition. However, about a month before the start of the season, the Slingers withdrew permanently from the NBL citing excessive transport costs to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters / TNT Tropang Texters / Tropang TNT / TNT Katropa

During his championship career with the

, he decided to leave the team and joined the PBA. He sent an application to the

enabling him to be included in the draft class of the 2008 PBA Draft at

Market! Market! Market! Market! (also known as Ayala Malls Market! Market!) is a real estate development owned by Ayala Land, a real estate subsidiary of Ayala Corporation and part of the Ayala Malls chain. It is located at McKinley Parkway, Bonifacio Global Ci ...

Bonifacio Global City Bonifacio may refer to: Places * Bonifacio, Corse-du-Sud, a town in Corsica, France * Strait of Bonifacio, separating Corsica from Sardinia * Bonifacio, Misamis Occidental, a municipality in the Philippines * Bonifacio Global City, a central bu ...

Taguig Taguig (), officially the City of Taguig ( fil, Lungsod ng Taguig), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in Metro Manila, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 886,722 people. Located in the northwestern shores of ...

. Castro was selected as the third overall pick of the Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters courtesy of a trade that sent superstar

Jay Washington Anthony Jay Washington (born November 10, 1981) is a Filipino-American professional basketball player for Yokohama Excellence of the Japanese B.League. College career Born in Zambales, Philippines, Washington played for the Eckerd College Tr ...

to the

San Miguel Beermen The San Miguel Beermen are a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). It is one of three PBA clubs owned by the San Miguel Corporation group of companies along with the Magnolia Hotshots and Barangay Ginebra ...

in exchange for the third pick that turned out to be Castro. Recently he was awarded by the PSA to be part of the Nation's brightest stars together with Manny Pacquiao, Manny Pangilinan, Manny Villar, Kelly Williams, Nonito Donaire, Wesley So and Willy Wang. He was also awarded by the PBA to be the Mr. Quality Minutes Player of the year beating Joseph Yeo. He averaged 9.1 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.4 steals in the 2008-09 PBA season. The season's No. 3 draft pick was No. 7 in assists (3.9), No. 9 in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.8) Talk N' Text won the championship against the San Miguel Beermen (4-2). He and Jimmy Alapag were titled as co-Finals MVP's. Talk N' Text won back to back championships in the 2010-2011 Commissioner's Cup against another San Miguel Corporation franchise the Barangay Ginebra Kings. Castro was named the Finals MVP and co-siding again with

Jimmy Alapag Jim Olmedo Alapag (born December 30, 1977) is a Filipino-American former professional basketball player. He serves as an assistant coach for the Stockton Kings of the NBA G League. He is nicknamed "The Mighty Mouse" and "The Captain". Early life ...

for two consecutive conferences. In 2015, Castro captured his sixth title with the Talk 'N Text franchise and PBA career after winning the 2015 PBA Commissioner's Cup title against

Rain or Shine Elasto Painters The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters are a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association owned by Asian Coatings Philippines, Inc. It debuted in the league in the 2006–07 PBA season after acquiring the franchise righ ...

. On October 14, 2016 Castro was recognized during the PBA Leo Awards Night as he was named to the PBA Mythcial First Team.

National team career

Youth team

Castro was in the roster of the Philippine basketball youth team in 2004.

2007 Southeast Asian Games

Castro was a part of the Philippine national team in the 2007 Southeast Asian Games basketball tournament. The Philippines won the gold medal without losing a game.

2013 FIBA Asia Championship

Jayson Castro was part of the Philippine team who won the silver medal in the

2013 FIBA Asia Championship The 2013 FIBA Asia Championship for Men was the intercontinental championship for basketball organized by FIBA Asia that served as the qualifying tournament for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Spain. The tournament was held from August 1–1 ...

. He was part of the FIBA Asia Mythical Team. Castro averaged better than 11 points in nine games for Gilas Pilipinas. He was brilliant in the last two games, scoring 17 points in the semifinal victory over South Korea and 18 in the gold medal game against Iran.

2015 FIBA Asia Championship

Jayson Castro once again proved to be the Asia's best point guard after he was named to the Mythical Five for the second straight FIBA Asia Championship. He has been the Gilas Pilipinas main gunner in the tournament, with his partnership with naturalized player Andray Blatche proving to be a formidable duo on the offensive end. The Philippines finished 2nd in the 2015 FIBA Asia Championship.

2016 Men's Olympic Basketball Qualifier–Manila

Castro was among the players who made it into the Final 12 roster of Gilas Pilipinas for the Men's Olympic Basketball Qualifying Tournament held in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

. After the team bowed out of the competition, Castro announced on his

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

photo that he will retire from his international career, citing the game against

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

will be the final game of his stint with the national basketball team.

Career statistics

PBA

''As of the end of 2021 season''
Real GM

Season-by-season averages

, - , align=left , , align=left , 2008–09 Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters season, Talk 'N Text , 46 , , 24.0 , , .439 , , .330 , , .860 , , 3.4 , , 4.0 , , 1.1 , , .3 , , 10.0 , - , align=left , , align=left ,

Talk 'N Text TNT (formerly known as Piltel, Mobiline, Phone Pal, and still unofficially known as Talk 'N Text) is a cellular service of Smart Communications in the Philippines. By April 2000, Piltel launched its GSM brand, Talk 'N Text. Piltel also reporte ...

, 48 , , 25.3 , , .447 , , .329 , , .640 , , 3.7 , , 3.7 , , .8 , , .3 , , 10.0 , - , align=left , , align=left ,

, 61 , , 25.1 , , .382 , , .304 , , .757 , , 3.9 , , 4.1 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , 11.9 , - , align=left , , align=left ,

, 56 , , 28.9 , , .415 , , .363 , , .710 , , 3.9 , , 3.9 , , .9 , , .1 , , 14.7 , - , align=left , , align=left ,

, 53 , , 27.8 , , .403 , , .321 , , .731 , , 4.4 , , 3.7 , , .8 , , .1 , , 14.5 , - , align=left , , align=left ,

, 49 , , 29.4 , , .404 , , .369 , , .788 , , 4.0 , , 4.2 , , .9 , , .2 , , 16.8 , - , align=left , , align=left ,

, 48 , , 32.7 , , .446 , , .420 , , .729 , , 4.1 , , 5.4 , , 1.2 , , .2 , , 18.5 , - , align=left , , align=left ,

TNT Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reagen ...

, 41 , , 31.6 , , .421 , , .342 , , .753 , , 4.0 , , 6.1 , , 1.1 , , .4 , , 20.3 , - , align=left , , align=left ,

, 54 , , 29.9 , , .440 , , .316 , , .802 , , 4.1 , , 6.2 , , 1.2 , , .4 , , 16.8 , - , align=left , , align=left ,

, 33 , , 28.3 , , .388 , , .342 , , .844 , , 4.5 , , 5.6 , , 1.4 , , .5 , , 14.8 , - , align=left , , align=left ,

, 51 , , 34.7 , , .394 , , .317 , , .828 , , 4.6 , , 6.1 , , 1.7 , , .5 , , 15.2 , - , align=left , , align=left ,

, 19 , , 28.1 , , .438 , , .278 , , .745 , , 3.5 , , 5.1 , , 1.5 , , .2 , , 15.2 , - , align=left , , align=left ,

, 37 , , 24.0 , , .419 , , .286 , , .861 , , 3.1 , , 3.7 , , 1.1 , , .3 , , 11.0 , -class=sortbottom , align=center colspan=2 , Career , 596 , , 28.5 , , .416 , , .341 , , .768 , , 4.0 , , 4.7 , , 1.1 , , .3 , , 14.5

National team

, - , align=left ,

, align=left rowspan="4" , , 9 , , 20.8 , , .641 , , .466 , , .941 , , 3.3 , , 3.0 , , 0.7 , , 0.2 , , 11.8 , - , align=left ,

2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup The 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup was the 17th edition of the FIBA Basketball World Cup, the tournament previously known as the FIBA World Championship. Hosted by Spain, it was the last tournament to be held on the then-current four-year cycle ...

, 4 , , 17.2 , , .421 , , .457 , , .833 , , 1.2 , , 1.2 , , 0.5 , , 0.0 , , 6.5 , - , align=left ,

2015 William Jones Cup The 2015 William Jones Cup was the 37th staging of William Jones Cup, a top-level international basketball tournament of FIBA Asia. The tournament was held in Taiwan from 29 August until 6 September 2015. All games were played in Xinchuang Gymnasi ...

, 6 , , 24.0 , , .543 , , .344 , , .692 , , 3.2 , , 4.2 , , 2.2 , , 0.0 , , 13.3 , - , align=left ,

2015 FIBA Asia Championship The 2015 FIBA Asia Championship was the 28th and last edition of the FIBA Asia Championship in men's basketball in Asia. It was organised by FIBA Asia. At the FIBA Asia Congress held in Doha, Qatar, the Central Board awarded the hosting rights to ...

, 9 , , 24.4 , , .519 , , .467 , , .850 , , 3.2 , , 2.6 , , 1.0 , , 0.0 , , 16.7

Honors and achievements

* 2004-2006 NCAA Mythical 5 Selection * 2006-07 PBL Mythical 5 Selection * 2006-07 PBL

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

* 2006-2007 PBL Showcase Skills Challenge Champion * 2007-08 PBL Mythical 5 Selection * 2007-2008 PBL Unity Cup Most Valuable Player * 2007-08 PBL Silver Cup Most Valuable Player * 2008 Brunei Cup Most Valuable Player * 2008 Malaysia Basketball League Most Valuable Player playing for the Singapore Slingers * 2009 Sports Digest PSA Fetes Nation's Brightest Stars Awardee * 2009 PBA Mr. Quality Player of the Year * 2010-2011 Philippine Cup Finals MVP * 2010-2011 Commissioner's Cup Finals MVP * 2010-2011 Mythical Second Team Selection * 2010-2011 PBA Most Improved Player * 2012-2013 Philippine Cup - Best Player of the Conference * 2012-2013 PBA First Mythical Team * 2014 Commissioner's Cup Best Player of the Conference * 2015 Commissioner's Cup Best Player of the Conference *

Mythical All-Star Selection - Best Point Guard in Asia *

Mythical Five *

Mythical All-Star Selection

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Castro, Jayson 1986 births Living people Basketball players from Pampanga Kapampangan people Filipino people of African-American descent PCU Dolphins basketball players Philippine Basketball Association All-Stars Philippines men's national basketball team players Filipino men's basketball players Point guards Shooting guards Southeast Asian Games gold medalists for the Philippines Southeast Asian Games competitors for the Philippines Southeast Asian Games medalists in basketball TNT Tropang Giga players 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup players Competitors at the 2007 Southeast Asian Games TNT Tropang Giga draft picks People from Guagua