Oh, San Miguel won again.
It’s like their never-ending dominance just became even more
never-ending.
So who’s the Finals MVP?
June Mar Fajardo.
Hmmm… it’s like every season is June Mar’s MVP season.
Averaging almost 20 points and 20 rebounds in the finals
(he’s technically a couple of decimals short of 20 rebounds), The Kraken is
further solidifying his stature as the Most Imba Player of his time.
And by winning the Philippine Cup crown and the Best Player
of the Conference Award, he’s probably on the verge of claiming his sixth MVP
title.
This prompted me to check out historical figures of other
pro leagues to see if they have an ultra dominating guy in their league in the
same mold as our June Mar Fajardo.
And here’s what I found out.
BOBAN
MARJANOVIC
THREE MVPs IN THREE SEASONS
SERBIA | SERBIAN SUPER LEAGUE
Look, everyone! It’s Euro June Mar in the house! When you flip 15… it’s
51! JUNE MAR MUST HAVE SERBIAN ANCESTRY! So here’s a person you’ll probably
remember since he kind of resembles June Mar Fajardo and Gilas Pilipinas will
go head-to-head with Serbia in the 2019 FIBA World Cup. Actually, Boban won
three straight in the second part of the Serbian season. The current
Philadelphia 76er in total would have four MVP awards, counting the first half
of the Serbian season.
LEON
RODGERS
THREE MVPs IN THREE SEASONS
NETHERLANDS | DUTCH BASKETBALL LEAGUE
If Leon Rodgers is somewhat a familiar name… it’s probably
because he once saw action in the PBA. Yes, the three-time DBL MVP once saw
action for the Barangay Ginebra Kings in the 2014 PBA Commissioner’s Cup. The
Kings finished with a woeful 3-6 record though. Rodgers led Ginebra with a 2-4
record and was replaced by Josh Powell… and Ginebra finished the conference
with Gabe Freeman.
GEORGIE
TORRES
THREE MVPs IN THREE SEASONS
PUERTO RICO | BALONCESTO SUPERIOR NACIONAL
There have been guys like Juan Vicens, Teofilo Cruz, and
Mario Morales who won the plum four times. And apart from Torres, Juan
Baez, Raymond Dalmau, and Christian Dalmau won the award three times. I mean... only a guy with Wikipedia access could know this, right? I chose
Torres over these guys because he is the only player to win the MVP award in
three straight successions. Other names to win the award are former PBA imports
Mike Harris of the Alaska Aces and Peter John Ramos of Kia Carnival and San
Miguel-Alab Pilipinas.
LEO
GUTIERREZ
FOUR MVPs IN SIX SEASONS
ARGENTINA | LIGA NACIONAL DE BASQUET
From 2004-05 to 2009-10, Leo Gutierrez is the king of
Argentinean pro ball. Aside from the four MVPs, he is also a four-time Finals
MVP and he led his teams to a record ten championships. He also won a gold
medal in the 2004 Athens Olympics in which he teamed with the likes of Manu
Ginobili, Luis Scola, Carlos Delfino, Pepe Sanchez, Andres Nocioni, and former
LNB MVPs that have played in the NBA like Fabricio Oberto, Ruben Wolkowyski,
and Walter Hermann.
WENDELL
ALEXIS
FOUR MVPs IN SIX SEASONS
GERMANY | BASKETBALL BUNDESLIGA
So ALBA Berlin had this player called Wendell Alexis and
this American played like a beast for the squad – winning four MVPs from 1996-97
to 2001-02. With that said, his reigns were cut short by two men – former
Sacramento King Derrick Phelps in 2000-01 and European Legend Dirk Nowitzki in
1998-99 which prompted the Dallas Mavericks to trade for his services.
YI
JIANLIAN
FOUR MVPs IN FOUR SEASONS
CHINESE BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
The former sixth pick of the 2007 NBA Draft had four MVPs in
four seasons from the 2012-13 CBA season to 2015-16. With that said, Yi is the
reverse version of Yao Ming – as he dominated the CBA after gaining experience
from his so-so NBA stint. I also considered Mengke Bateer who had four MVPs in
six years but his 2005-06 MVP was returned because he had the GRAVE
infraction of arguing with a referee. GRAVE!!!
TANOKA
BEARD
FOUR MVPs IN FOUR SEASONS
LITHUANIAN BASKETBALL LEAGUE
The American spent the 2003-04 season up until the 2006-07
season on top of the Lithuanian basketball food chain. Beard would also help
Zalgiris Kaunas to four Lithuanian League titles.
KAREEM
ABDUL-JABBAR
FIVE MVPs IN SEVEN SEASONS
UNITED STATES | NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Bill Russell had four MVPs in five years. Lebron James had
four MVPs in five years. Wilt Chamberlain and Larry Bird had three consecutive
MVP awards. Magic Johnson had three MVPs in four years. But yeah as far as
streaks, it took the likes of Dave Cowens and Bob McAdoo to mess up
Abdul-Jabbar’s streak. Despite this though, The Master of the Sky Hook is seen
by many as one of the best careers the league has ever witnessed. And if we add
his sixth MVP to the mix, Kareem basically has six MVPs in a decade… and it’s
not a bad feat to accomplish.
ANTOINE
RIGAUDEAU
FIVE MVPs IN SIX SEASONS
FRANCE | LIGUE NATIONALE DE BASKET PRO A
From 1990-91 to 1993-94, Antoine Rigaudeau of Cholet won the
league’s MVP award for four consecutive seasons. This should have been five
consecutive but the reign of Yann Bonato got in the way. Le Roi or The King in
his native France would eventually play for the Dallas Mavericks but would
retire after a serious knee injury.
NIKOS
GALIS
FIVE MVPs IN FIVE SEASONS
GREECE | GREEK BASKET LEAGUE
From 1988 to 1992, Nick Galis of Aris owned Greek Basket’s
top individual prize. Actually, Dimitris Diamantidis won the most MVPs with six
but he won six in a span of nine seasons. Nick the Greek is widely considered
as one of the greatest players in the country but while he was drafted by the
Boston Celtics in 1979, he never played outside Greece.
ANDREW
GAZE
SEVEN MVPs IN EIGHT SEASONS
AUSTRALIA | NATIONAL BASKETBALL LEAGUE
Seen by many as the greatest Australian to play the sport,
Gaze could have eight straight MVPs from 1991 to 1998 had not for Robert Rose.
But then again, maybe it’s not entirely Rose’s fault as Gaze would sacrifice
the record for a stint with the Washington Bullets. Gaze would also have his
five straight MVPs cut short when he signed and won a title with the San
Antonio Spurs. Rose also had an NBA stint with the Los Angeles Clippers… and a
PBA stint in 1990 for the Purefoods Hotdogs.
So as far as streaks are, June Mar Fajardo currently is in the level of Nikos Galis.
And that’s good.
But just imagine if The Kraken managed to win his sixth pro
league MVP title.
Is there some sort of Guinness record to be accomplished
here?
END
0 Comments:
Post a Comment