Fajardo willing to be just as facilitator to SMB's mighty offense
At A Glance
- As unselfish and as humble as he is, June Mar Fajardo had no issues playing either as the focal point of the offense or by just becoming the facilitator for San Miguel.
As unselfish and as humble as he is, June Mar Fajardo had no issues playing either as the focal point of the offense or by just becoming the facilitator for San Miguel.
The seven-time Most Valuable Player said he was just ready to provide anything his team needs in order to get the win.
That was what transpired in the Beermen’s 109-85 Game 2 win in the 2023-24 PBA Commissioner’s Cup when even as after being reduced to a facilitator to Bennie Boatwright and Marcio Lassiter in the first half, asserted his might and threw his weight around in the last two quarters to ensure the win for the Beermen.
“Priority ko lang naman sa loob, taga facilitate lang ako, taga pasa lang ako ng bola. Hinahanap ko si Bennie binibigyan ko sya ng screen sobrang daming scorer sa team,” said Fajardo who after just scoring three points in the first two quarters wound up with 19 points along with 14 rebounds at the end of the game.
“Buti rin pinapasahan ako nung second half and then iyon nakascore ako,” added the veteran big man.
SMB head coach Jorge Gallent lauded Fajardo’s contributions for the Beermen even if he was not always the first option in their sets.
“When June Mar gets the ball on the post, he can do a lot of things. He is a good passer and a great post player. If they don't double him, he’s gonna go straight to the basket, if you double him he passes the ball very well and that’s why he is seven time MVP,” Gallent said of his prized center.
Continuously improving was Fajardo’s game for the Beermen as he also now proved to be a potent threat even from beyond 20-feet away from the basket. The Cebuano gentle giant nailed back-to-back triples in garbage time of Game 2 – something that Fajardo said he was given the license to do so.
“Binigyan ako ng kumpyansa ni coach eh pinapatira nya ako. Sa practice tumitira naman ako sa practice,” said Fajardo who, despite the makes, stressed that he won’t fall in love shooting the treys.
“Hindi lang ako tumitira sa game kasi maraming shooters na, baka mawalan sila ng trabaho,” Fajardo said in jest generating laughter from the members of the press.