Even if Thursday’s rains have been going non-stop for hours now, and even if he has a protective boot to immobilize his fractured right shin, June Mar Fajardo still went to the Meralco Gym in Pasig.
The reigning, four-time Most Valuable Player visited Gilas Pilipinas, which is preparing the best they can for the 2019 FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers set exactly a week from now.
“Nandito ako para sumuporta,” said the 28-year-old.
A mainstay of the national team, Fajardo won’t be seeing action for Gilas in the upcoming Qualifiers due to his fractured shin, which will keep him off basketball for about two months.
With him in such an unfortunate predicament, Fajardo will be missing a lot of the fourth window.
First is his much-anticipated face-off with Iran’s behemoth Hamed Haddadi, who has long dominated the Asian basketball scene due to his strong presence inside the paint.
Gilas will be facing Iran in Tehran on September 13, before going back home to host Qatar at the SMART Araneta Coliseum on September 17, in a game that will be held behind closed doors.
Another thing that Fajardo’s about to miss is his team-up with long-time rival Greg Slaughter – plenty of Filipino fans have always dreamed of a Gilas frontcourt that boasts the two giants.
Fajardo knows how tough it is to miss those exciting moments. But he’s simply not dwelling on the negatives.
“Oo nga eh, sayang. Pero marami pa tayong basketball na lalaruin,” shared the proud son of Pinamungajan, Cebu, who has been a member of the Gilas program since 2013.
