June Mar Fajardo, one of the biggest players on the floor the night of the brawl, could’ve easily thrown a punch or two but knew better not to even think about doing it.
Instead, Fajardo remembered a lesson he learned from his folks that showed what a basketball MVP should be like.
“Nakita nyo naman kung anong ginawa ko dun. Tinuruan ako ng parents ko, hindi naman sa lahat ng panahon, kung pwede mo iwasan yung gulo umiwas ka kasi baka pagsisihan mo,” said an apologetic Fajardo during a team dinner hosted by Chooks-to-Go on Tuesday night.
(You saw what I did. I was taught by my parents that I should stay away from any mess if possible because you might end up regretting it after.)
The 6-foot-10 Fajardo, along with team captain Gabe Norwood and point guard Baser Amer were the last men standing for Gilas Pilipinas, which had nine players ejected after taking part in the free-for-all with the Australian national team in the Fiba World Cup Qualifiers at Philippine Arena.
The four-time PBA MVP also said Gilas blew a chance to use the game as a time for the team to further improve.
“Sayang kasi yung opportunity na mag improve tayo, pinaghandaan natin yun. Nangyari yung hindi inaasahan.”
(We lost our opportunity to improve. It was a game we really prepared for. The unexpected happened.)
Fajardo was Gilas’ best offensive player in the game with 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field.
He was hoping he could do more for the team before the fight erupted at the 4:01 mark of the third quarter and the game was called off just a couple minutes following its resumption as the Philippines ran out of players.
The 28-year-old Fajardo said he remains grateful for being part of the team.
“Thankful ako sa grupo na to, nandun talaga yung brotherhood, yung samahan.”
(I’m thankful to be part of this group. The brotherhood, the bond was obvious.)
Amer also issued an apology to the supporters of Gilas for the team’s involvement in the ruckus.
“Gusto lang namin mag-sorry sa mga fans ng gilas. Kung anuman yung nangyari kagabi is sabi nga ni coach Chot (Reyes), let’s move on na. Sa mga kabataan na iniidolo kami, sorry po sa mga nangyari.”
(We just want to say sorry to Gilas’ fans. Whatever it was that happened last night, as coach Chot said, let’s move on from it. To the kids who look up to us, we are very sorry for what happened.)
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