When June Mar Fajardo’s number was called late in the opening quarter of San Miguel’s game against the Globalport Batang Pier, there was a sigh of relief among the Beermen faithful, who thought that the three-time MVP had finally recovered from the injury that forced him to miss the majority of Gilas’ FIBA Asia Cup campaign.
And it seemed like he was already in tip-top shape, as the 6-foot-10 big man scored four straight points in less than two minutes he was plugged in, including a putback of a Wendell McKines miss.
But after the second frame, Fajardo was no longer called into action, as he gladly sat on the bench watching San Miguel take a 115-112 win against Globalport.
According to San Miguel head coach Leo Austria, he just wanted to see where Fajrdo was in his recovery.
“I was not able to give June Mar a lot of (playing) time kasi may injury pa siya,” disclosed Austria, as he was forced to limit Fajardo to just seven minutes.
“He wasn’t able to practice with us the past two games because he is still recuperating.”
Fajardo, though no longer wobbling, admitted that he is still in the process of regaining his full strength.
“Di ko pa lam,” answered Fajardo when asked when he thinks he can play regular minutes.
“Kailangan ko pa magpa-strengthen e.”
But with the Grand Slam in mind, the 27-year-old, who is averaging 22.5 points and 7.0 rebounds prior to this game, vowed that he will not miss another game for San Miguel.
“Pero maglalaro naman ako.”
