Tropa wary of healthy Fajardo

Now in full health, the San Miguel Beer center poses a defensive nightmare for the grand slam-seeking TNT Tropang 5G when they meet in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup best-of-seven finals starting today at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

TNT’s frontcourt has a tough task ahead guarding and keeping the 6-foot-10 Fajardo from getting to his sweet spot down low and wreaking havoc inside the paint.

Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser and Poy Erram will be tasked as primary defenders of the eight-time Most Valuable Player, who could be well on his way to winning a 12th Best Player of the Conference recognition after carrying the Beermen back in the championship after missing the playoffs last conference.

Fajardo has bulldozed the opposition that got in his way in the playoffs, from Raymond Almazan and Brandon Bates of dethroned Meralco to the Kings’ Japeth Aguilar and Troy Rosario in a semis series that went the full seven games, where he dealt with a calf issue he sustained in the opener.

Both Ganuelas-Rosser and Erram know that taking Fajardo one-on-one will be disastrous.

“It’s always a challenge. They have a lot of great players over there. With June Mar, you just have to make him work. Try to get him off his spots. But it’s not just one player. Not just me and Poy, it’s gonna take the whole team,” Ganuelas-Rosser said as he buckles for his first championship appearance.

Although giving up at least three inches in height, the wide-bodied Ganuelas-Rosser could block Fajardo from getting into his position inside the paint to buy some time for the Tropang 5G to swarm on the center whenever the Beermen try to pound the ball underneath.

“We talk about team defense a lot. It’s something we rely on. It’s gonna take a total effort and you know we’ll just try our best,” he added.

But stopping or even just slowing down the 35-year-old latest addition to the PBA 50 Greatest Players list is easier said than done.

Despite his calf injury and a dip in minutes played while recovering, the Beermen behemoth still averaged a double-double in the semis with 12.57 points, 15.4 rebounds along with 3.43 assists, 1.14 blocks and 0.57 steals.

M. Escarlote

“We all know how June Mar attracts a lot (of defenders). It takes a lot. We have to play team defense. We don’t need to play individual defense,” Erram said.

“Because if we play individual defense we’ll just put ourselves in a difficult spot. If we play team defense, we’ll have a chance (of winning).”

And of course, San Miguel is not just a Fajardo show.

TNT is also dealing with a team laden with stars in CJ Perez, Juami Tiongson, Chris Ross, Don Trollano and Jericho Cruz.

“Same as what Brandon said. We just can’t focus our defense on June Mar alone. They are a very talented team,” Erram said. Mark Escarlote