 Salva with theGlobalPort Batang Pier in 2014 | |||||||||||||||
| Free agent | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Small forward | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born | (1990-03-08)March 8, 1990 (age 35) Quezon City, Philippines | ||||||||||||||
| Nationality | Filipino | ||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 194 lb (88 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | La Salle Green Hills (Mandaluyong) San Beda (Taytay, Rizal) | ||||||||||||||
| College | Ateneo (2008–2012) | ||||||||||||||
| PBA draft | 2013: 2nd round, 11th overall pick | ||||||||||||||
| Selected by theGlobalPort Batang Pier | |||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 2013–present | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
| 2013–2014 | GlobalPort Batang Pier | ||||||||||||||
| 2014–2015 | Barako Bull Energy | ||||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | Barangay Ginebra San Miguel | ||||||||||||||
| 2016–2017 | Mahindra Floodbuster / Kia Picanto | ||||||||||||||
| 2017–2020 | Meralco Bolts | ||||||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters | ||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
Medals
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Nicolas Raymond J. Salva (born March 8, 1990) is a Filipino basketball player who last played for thePhoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters of thePhilippine Basketball Association (PBA). He was selected 11th overall in the2013 PBA draft by the Batang Pier.[1]
Salva played for both theLa Salle Greenies and theSan Beda Red Cubs in theNCAA Juniors division.[2] In his final high school season, he averaged 20.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.5 blocks as his team almost upset the Letran Squires in the NCAA Final Four, and made the NCAA Mythical Five. He had offers to play for DLSU,UP (his father's alma mater), and stay with San Beda, but he chose to play forAteneo. He chose Ateneo after a personal meeting with businessman and Ateneo sports patronManny V. Pangilinan.[3]
Salva played college basketball forAteneo Blue Eagles of theUniversity Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) for five years. In all of those years, Salva has won a UAAP championship and was the Finals MVP in2011 and2012, his final two years in college.
Salva joined a recruiting class that includedRyan Buenafe,Justin Chua, andFrank Golla.[4] In his freshman debut, he got his first UAAP point by scoring one point from the free throw line.[2] He got his first championship that season when Ateneo swept DLSU in the UAAP Finals ofSeason 71, and he also made the All-Rookie Team, along with Buenafe.[5][2]
For his second season, Salva played a vital role as the power forward off the bench, despite being undersized at 6'3".[2] Increasing his numbers to 8.1 points, 4 rebounds and 0.8 blocks, he won the Sixth Man of the Year award forSeason 72. He was suspended for one game for punching Jens Knuttel of theFEU Tamaraws.[6] That year, Ateneo clinched a UAAP title, aUNIGAMES championship, and aPhilippine Collegiate Champions League (PCCL) title.[7]
In his third year, Salva had to step up some more as Ateneo lost its Finals MVPRabeh Al-Hussaini to graduation, along with several key players inJai Reyes andNoy Baclao.[8] In their first game ofSeason 73, he missed a game-winner against FEU.[9] Against theUP Fighting Maroons, he scored 18 points on 5-of-7 shooting.[10] At the end of the first round of eliminations, he had led Ateneo in scoring with nearly 13 points a game, while supplying six rebounds.[2] However, in a rematch against UP in the second round, he injured his finger.[11] Following the injury, and increased defensive pressure on him from opponents, he had a four-game stretch where he totaled just 16 points, capped by a zero-point, 0-for-6 line in a loss to UE.[2] He was able to bounce back once his finger healed, as he grabbed a double-double of 13 points and 12 rebounds against theAdamson Falcons. In the postseason, he normed 10 points and 6.7 boards to help lead Ateneo to a three-peat.
In the third game of his fourth season, Salva contributed 12 points and 10 rebounds as Ateneo won over theNU Bulldogs.[12] He then had 14 points in a win over theUST Growling Tigers, their sixth straight that season.[13] In a win over FEU, he scored 18 points with nine rebounds.[14] In a rematch against UST, he scored 20 as Ateneo grabbed in ninth straight win.[15] Ateneo then blew out DLSU for its 11th straight win, in which he had 19 points.[16] He then had 16 points, six rebounds, and two blocks in another win over UP.[17] They only lost one game throughout the entire two elimination rounds, which was against Adamson and in which he only made two of his eight shots.[2] In Game 1 of the Finals, he scored 24 points on a perfect eight for eight shooting display, and also made all eight of his free throws.[18][2] The following game, he scored 15 as he won his fourth straight UAAP title, and his first Finals MVP award.[19]
During the championship bonfire forSeason 74, Salva boldly claimed that Ateneo would win one more title the following year, completing a five-peat.[20] To beginSeason 75, he scored 14 points and six rebounds for a win over Adamson.[21] Against La Salle, he had 16 points and seven boards as Ateneo got its third win in four games.[22] In a win over UP, he finished with 21 points (with 11 coming in the second quarter), five rebounds, and three assists while going 6-of-10 from the field and making all nine of his free throws.[23] In a rematch against Adamson, he scored 12 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter as Ateneo qualified for the playoffs.[24] They made it back to the Finals where in Game 1, he scored a career-high 30 points and Ateneo won.[25] In scoring 30 points, he became only the third Atenean to score 30 or more in a UAAP Finals game, afterLA Tenorio and Al-Hussaini.[26] He was limited to just eight the following game, but Ateneo still managed to win, and he received his fifth UAAP championship.[27]
Salva was drafted byGlobalPort Batang Pier eleventh overall in the2013 PBA draft.[1] He was among six Ateneo players taken in that draft, along withGreg Slaughter, Buenafe,Justin Chua,JP Erram, andChris Sumalinog.[28] Aside from him, the Batang Pier also draftedTerrence Romeo,RR Garcia, andIsaac Holstein.[29] He was signed to a two-year contract worth more than P3.5 million.[30] In a2013–14 Philippine Cup loss to theAir21 Express, he had nine points.[31]
On June 4, 2014, Salva andBonbon Custodio was traded by GlobalPort toBarako Bull Energy forRonjay Buenafe and a2015 second round pick.[32] He played limited minutes with the team.[33]
On August 25, 2015, Salva and a2016 first round pick was traded by Barako Bull toBarangay Ginebra San Miguel forJosh Urbiztondo,Jens Knuttel, andEmman Monfort.[34] In a2015–16 Philippine Cup win over theMeralco Bolts, he scored 11 points to go with six rebounds.[35] He won a championship with Ginebra during the2016 Governors' Cup.[36] At the end of the season, Ginebra tried to trade him to Meralco, but negotiations fell through.[37]
On November 15, 2016, Salva was traded by Barangay Ginebra forMahindra Floodbuster's 2017 second round pick.[38][36] During the2016–17 Philippine Cup, he scored in double-digits in back-to-back games with 10 points and seven rebounds against theSan Miguel Beermen and 11 points against Ginebra, but both games were losses.[39] As a result, Mahindra fell to 0–5.[40] They finally got their first win of the season in a Christmas Day game against theBlackwater Elite, in which he had 14 points.[41] They followed it up with another win, this time over Meralco, in which his 13 points helped keep the game out of reach.[42] Against theStar Hotshots, he had 15 points, but they lost and ended the conference with a record of 3–8.[43]
During the 2017 offseason, Salva signed with Meralco, where he reunited with his college head coachNorman Black.[44] In a2017–18 Philippine Cup game against theNLEX Road Warriors, he scored 20 points on 9-of-12 shooting, but Meralco lost due to a game winner fromKiefer Ravena.[45] In a2018 Commissioner's Cup game against theColumbian Dyip, he scored 13 points off the bench.[46] He tied his then-PBA career high in Game 2 of theirGovernors' Cup semifinal series against Alaska with 20 points, but Alaska tied the series.[47] Alaska went on to win the series 3–1.[48]
In the offseason, Meralco extended Salva's contract for two more years.[49] On January 16, 2019, he recorded a new PBA-career high of 22 points with two steals in a loss to thePhoenix Fuel Masters. Against Blackwater, he scored 12 of his 14 points in the fourth quarter to give Meralco its first win of the season.[50] He then had 16 points off the bench in an overtime win over the Batang Pier.[51] He led the team with 18 points in a loss to theRain or Shine Elasto Painters.[52] Meralco then dropped to 3–7 and out of playoff contention for thePhilippine Cup in a loss to Alaska, despite a PBA career-high 23 points, eight rebounds, and three assists from him.[53] In theCommissioner's Cup, he had 15 points and seven boards in a win over Phoenix, and 14 in a loss to NLEX.[54][55] He also contributed during the2019 Governors' Cup Finals against Ginebra, where in Game 2, he contributed nine points, two rebounds, and four assists in 17 quality minutes as Meralco tied the series with a win.[56] Ginebra however, went on to win in five games.[57]
During the2020 PBA season, he helped Meralco make the All-Filipino semifinals for the first time in franchise history.[58] After that season, he became a free agent once again.
Initially, Salva was going to play for Phoenix'sPBA 3x3 team, theLimitless Appmasters.[59] Before he could play for them in thefirst conference of the 2021 season however, Phoenix brought him to the Fuel Masters.[60] He only played one game for Phoenix.[61]
After his stint with Phoenix, Salva returned to Limitless during thethird conference of the 2021 season.[62] He helped Limitless get to the Grand Finals quarterfinals where they lost to thePurefoods TJ Titans.[63][64]
For the2022–23 season, Salva joinedPlatinum Karaoke.[65] In thefirst conference, he helped Platinum reach the Finals, where they lost toTNT Tropang Giga.[66] In the second conference, they finally won a leg of the tournament.[67] They won another leg during thethird conference, beating theCavitex Braves.[68]
In 2024, Salva was hired by theAteneo Blue Eagles to coach their 3x3 basketball teams.[69]
| Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
As of the end of 2021 season[70]
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013–14 | GlobalPort | 25 | 11.8 | .305 | .133 | .789 | 1.9 | .5 | .2 | .0 | 3.2 |
| Barako Bull | |||||||||||
| 2014–15 | Barako Bull | 18 | 6.9 | .321 | .333 | 1.000 | .9 | .2 | .0 | .0 | 2.4 |
| 2015–16 | Barangay Ginebra | 16 | 6.2 | .304 | .214 | .750 | 1.0 | .2 | .0 | .2 | 2.1 |
| 2016–17 | Mahindra / Kia | 31 | 12.4 | .305 | .167 | .722 | 2.0 | .5 | .1 | .2 | 3.5 |
| 2017–18 | Meralco | 32 | 12.4 | .496 | .423 | .750 | 2.5 | .6 | .1 | .2 | 4.9 |
| 2019 | Meralco | 37 | 15.7 | .456 | .361 | .871 | 2.5 | .7 | .3 | .2 | 6.1 |
| 2020 | Meralco | 11 | 4.0 | .400 | .000 | 1.000 | .5 | .4 | .0 | .1 | 1.6 |
| 2021 | Phoenix Super LPG | 1 | 4.9 | .000 | — | — | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 |
| Career | 171 | 11.5 | .389 | .302 | .803 | 1.9 | .5 | .1 | .1 | 3.9 | |
| Year | Team | GP | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008–09 | Ateneo | 16 | 9.4 | .386 | 1.000 | .538 | 1.9 | .3 | .1 | .4 | 2.6 |
| 2009–10 | 15 | 17.0 | .505 | .286 | .708 | 7.1 | .7 | .0 | .9 | 7.5 | |
| 2010–11 | 17 | 23.1 | .398 | .167 | .698 | 5.8 | 1.1 | .4 | .8 | 9.6 | |
| 2011–12 | 16 | 27.1 | .465 | .200 | .844 | 5.9 | 1.9 | .3 | .5 | 13.9 | |
| 2012–13 | 17 | 27.9 | .497 | .500 | .891 | 5.0 | 1.6 | .3 | .4 | 14.1 | |
| Career | 81 | 21.1 | .458 | .286 | .783 | 5.1 | 1.1 | .2 | .6 | 9.6 | |
Salva got to play for thePhilippine men's national team during the2011 SEA Games.[73] That year, they won over all their opponents enroute to the gold medal.[74]
In 2021, Salva married Karla Aguas, aRX 93.1 radio personality.[75] They have known each other since he was still playing for the Blue Eagles.[76] He was previously in a relationship withMiss World 2013Megan Young.[77]
Salva has been outspoken onTwitter. In 2012, after thePhilippine national men's football team lost to Singapore, he called the match "boring", and was bashed online by football fans.[78] In 2013, he engaged in a Twitter back-and-forth with FEU guardTerrence Romeo about the latter's ball-hogging tendencies.[79] In 2017, he claimed that there should be a separate MVP award for “imports” like and for locals in the midst ofBen Mbala's MVP campaign.[80]
Throughout his career, Salva has engaged in philanthropy. In 2012, he participated in a charity basketball game for victims ofTyphoon "Sendong".[81] When he was still with KIA, he and the ballclub provided aid to orphanages.[82] In 2020, he provided aid for frontliners and donated relief goods for the homeless in theLoyola Heights andCubao areas ofQuezon City. He also donated to a fund for non-regular PBA workers that was started by theAlaska Aces that year.[83]
Salva is also an avid collector of fashion accessories. He began his collection during his high school days with Kobes andAir Jordans.[84] Among the prized items in his collection include Comme des Garçons and GOLF le FLEUR*Converse sneakers, Kobe 2s signed byKobe Bryant himself, andRolex andPanerai watches.[85]
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