June Mar Fajardo’s Historic 7th PBA MVP Plum
The gentle giant from Cebu and San Miguel Beer’s big man June Mar Fajardo won his seventh Philippine Basketball Association’s Most Valuable Player award, the first player to achieve such a feat in professional basketball.
June Mar Fajardo edged out his fellow Visaya-speaking rival, Scottie Thompson from the Barangay Ginebra squad, the aggressive guard who won the award during last year’s awarding ceremony.
Aside from Scottie Thompson, the other MVP contenders include Gin Kings forward Christian Standhardinger and Beermen guard CJ Perez.
The awarding ceremony in the PBA’s 48th season was held at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City, Metro Manila.
The veteran big man and soft-spoken Cebuano garnered 2248 statistical points to win the race. Fajardo set a new PBA record by winning the MVP plum, which puts him two trophies from Ramon Fernandez and Alvin Patrimonio, who both won the MVP honors four times.
Aside from the highly anticipated announcement of the Most Valuable Player award, the PBA also announced some interesting names, as Converge big man Justin Arana took the Rookie of the Year award, former FiberXers standout and now Ginebra guard Maverick Ahanmisi the Most Improved Player, while NLEX ace Kevin Alas the Sportsmanship Award.
June Mar Fajardo and the three MVP finalists also made the league’s First Mythical Team. They were joined by high-leaping Ginebra forward Jamie Malonzo.
The second mythical team is NorthPort standouts Arvin Tolentino and Robert Bolick, TNT stars Mikey Williams and Calvin Oftana, and Magnolia bruiser Calvin Oftana.
San Miguel’s gentle giant, June Mar Fajardo, also made the All-Defensive Team, joining Standhardinger, Meralco’s Chris Newsome and Cliff Hodge, and Magnolia’s Jio Jalalon.
June Mar Fajardo’s latest MVP recognition was remarkable and quite a triumph for the 6-foot-10 big man who suffered a freak injury three years ago. He broke his shin bone in practice, which led to his non-appearance throughout the 2020 season.
The broken tibia suffered by June Mar put him at bay for around 18 months- a long layoff that at one point brought upon immense doubt, according to Fajardo himself.
With determination and sheer commitment to prove his worth as a player, he managed to make the trek back to the PBA’s summit, starting with ruling the 2022 Philippine Cup, where he emerged as the Best Player of the Conference and the eventual Finals Most Valuable Player.
Last March 2020, Fajardo recalled when he accepted his 6th PBA MVP award. As he wheeled out onto the Smart Araneta Coliseum floor on a mobility device and accompanied by his parents, June Mar wondered if it would be his last time to do so. Still, on Sunday, at the League’s LEO awards, Fajardo’s comeback came full circle after he won a historic 7th MVP award.
June Mar’s averages of 17.7 points, 13.5 rebounds, 1.3 blocks, and a career-high 2.9 assists from 46 games in Season 47, Fajardo garnered 2,248 points to handily beat out teammate CJ Perez (1,117), as well as Ginebra’s Scottie Thompson (1,539) and Christian Standhardinger (1,559).
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