I think 15 years ago, I made some sort of vanity project wherein I listed down my 100 Best PBA Careers of All-Time.
I say “careers” because saying the “greatest” has its own pros and cons. One “con” is that I value historical stats and try to give bonus points to the pioneers. Also, we have our own favorite players, so the “greatest” tag is also going to measure a legend’s fandom and while it’s easy to rate the awesomeness of Robert Jaworski, Alvin Patrimonio, James Yap, Hector Calma, and Samboy Lim on top of this category, it might not be the case for a Ginebra hater, a San Miguel troll, and a Purefoods critic.
Or a U/Tex Wrangler?
I lowkey love their jerseys.
Also, I made this list by researching their stats and making 300 players duke it out. When I first made this list in the mid-2000s in the www.hoops.blink.ph website, it had the likes of Jun Papa, Ompong Segura, Bal David, Rey Cuenco, Larry Mumar, Marte Saldana, Rudy Kutch, Andy Seigle, Elmer Cabahug, Boybits Victoria, Willie Pearson, Roger Yap, Dondon Ampalayo, Rene Canent, Wynne Arboleda, Mick Pennisi, Noy Castillo, Vince Hizon, Pido Jarencio, Chris Jackson, and Yoyong Martirez. When I made the current version of this list, I considered a couple of names that are still playing like CJ Perez, Ian Sangalang, Jeff Chan, Solomon Mercado, Poy Erram, and Chris Newsome.
Spoiler alert, these guys never made the list.
Unlike my first Best Careers list, I have gotten hold of the career averages of the PBA legends from 1975 up until the present. I know their best seasons and their worst seasons as well. When I created my list back then, I zeroed in on the players I wanted to make the list. With that said, I had LA Tenorio at number 88 then.
LA Tenorio is going to be a lot higher on this list.
If you remember PBFantasy, the PBA-based fantasy game from the mid-2000s, I created a stat equivalent that is somewhat similar to its grading system. Points are 1.25, rebounds are 1.5, assists are 2, steals are 2.5, and blocks are 2.75. I gave points an additional .25 because an okay PBA season average is more or less, seven points per game. Meanwhile, I gave an additional 0.25 points on blocks because with the exception of an elite few, swatting shots in the PBA is an extremely monumental task.
In terms of other categories, I considered the MVP, Mythical Team selection, BPC, Finals MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, All-Star MVP, Rookie of the Year, Most Improved Player, 40 Greatest Players list, scoring titles, championships, and grand slams. I also gave away phantom Mythical points for the players who were Top 15 in my tabulation from 1975 up until 1983 – or the times the league didn’t have the Mythical Second Team selection.
I also considered the milestones and the games played. I never had the need to put extra points other than the phantom pioneer points, but I am going to create a mini-tourney for the top players within a particular range (91 to 100, 81 to 90, etc.) based on the number of individual awards they accumulated. The players with an MVP, BPC, Mythical First Team, Mythical Second Team, and Finals MVP will have an advantage (in that order.) For example, if the number 100 guy and the number 99 guy had two individual awards, the one with the BPC would trump the one with the Finals MVP award (since the BPC covered more conference scope than the Finals MVP.) If there is still a deadlock, then the number of championships they won will come into play.
And oh yeah, I almost forgot. Instead of writing why they are on this list, I am going to write about why they are RANKED THIS LOW on the list. I made this change so the blog wouldn’t get too wordy and you probably know why these legends are in this place in the first place. The most obvious red flags are the pioneer’s curse, injury bugs, low overall stats, limited amounts of awards and championships, journeyman status causing statistical decline, and even off-court antics.
So it’s time to dive headfirst on this list. If you have violent reactions, you can just share it with your friends to say what an utter moron I am. But here’s the thing – this is my list... and you can make yours if you want... and I will respect it.
The game starts now.
10 | ABET GUIDABEN
1975 – 1995 | PIONEER – CRISPA
AVERAGES: 14.6PPG – 7.9RPG – 2.1APG – 0.9BPG – 1082 GAMES
MILESTONES: 15700 POINTS – 8500 REBOUNDS – 2200 ASSISTS – 900 BLOCKS
AWARDS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
2-TIME MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
5-TIME MYTHICAL FIRST TEAM
2-TIME GRAND SLAM MEMBER (CRISPA)
16-TIME CHAMPION
40 GREATEST PLAYERS IN PBA HISTORY
Abet Guidaben is a two-time MVP and is a 16-time PBA champion with most of his championships coming from the Crispa Redmanizers. The Pride of Camiguin's career started slow, with most of Crispa getting five MVP wins before getting his own in 1983. During his first five seasons with the Redmanizers, Guidaben averaged 10.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 0.98 assists. His last five seasons with Crispa turned these numbers around, averaging 16.9 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and one block per game.
Guidaben is also the biggest rival of Ramon Fernandez. During the '70s, Don Ramon had the edge against Abet but during the '80s, Guidaben and Fernandez battled for supremacy for team wins as well as individual accolades. They were also traded for each other twice - cementing the fact that they were the top stars of the times.
In some ways, Guidaben's Crispa connection as well as his rivalry with The Franchise is both a pro and a con to his career. If he didn't have Atoy Co, Bogs Adornado, Freddie Hubalde, and Philip Cezar as teammates, would he have won more MVP awards? If he wasn't sent to Purefoods in a deal that sent Ramon Fernandez to San Miguel in 1988, would he become the first player in league history to win three grand slams? It also didn't help Guidaben that he became a big-time journeyman at the tail-end of his career. At least Guidaben managed to outlast Fernandez and his Crispa teammates as he is the PBA's all-time leader in games played. Also, as per the 2023 all-time records, Guidaben ranks second in total points and rebounds and seventh in total blocks.
9 | ATOY CO
1975 – 1988 | PIONEER – CRISPA
AVERAGES: 17.4PPG – 3.3RPG – 3.7APG – 0.7SPG – 749 GAMES
MILESTONES: 12900 POINTS – 2400 REBOUNDS – 2700 ASSISTS
AWARDS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
1-TIME MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
9-TIME MYTHICAL FIRST TEAM
1-TIME SEASON SCORING CHAMPION
2-TIME GRAND SLAM MEMBER (CRISPA)
14-TIME CHAMPION
40 GREATEST PLAYERS IN PBA HISTORY
Atoy Co is the first PBA player to hit 5,000 points and 10,000 points. He is also fourth in all-time points scored and if he played in a time when triples were more revered than set shots, then I bet Co would be on top of that list as well. Yes, Bogs Adornado had two MVPs with the Crispa Redmanizers but throughout their run, it was Co that was the focal point of their team's offense. In ten seasons with the Redmanizers, Co averaged 19.6 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 4.0 assists. Aside from the two grand slams and 13 championships, Co is a nine-time Mythical FIRST Teamer in a time when the Mythical Second Team never existed. In 1979, The Fortune Cookie led all locals in scoring with 23.1 en route to his first and only MVP award.
Co averaged 10 or more points in 13 of his 14 seasons. He later ventured into showbiz, politics, and even coaching. While Co is a scorer, his usual numbers also consist of three rebounds and about four assists per game. I can't really say anything about his career because, at this point, most of the names on this list are certified top-tier bosses. With that said, Co's streak of achievements ended after the disbandment of the Redmanizers. Spending two seasons with the Manila Beer Brewmasters and the Great Taste Coffee Makers, Co's numbers were far from his Crispa stats. His short-lived tag team with Ramon Fernandez never resulted in titles and that partnership ended with the first Fernandez/Guidaben trade. His first year with the Great Taste Coffee Makers was the first and only time Co averaged single digits and he would retire the following season. With that said, being a Great Taste fan in 1987 would have been awesome, considering that the team had Co and Crispa teammates Philip Cezar and Bernie Fabiosa, the Toyota tandem of Abe King and Arnie Tuadles, the rookie season of Allan Caidic, and the final season of Ricardo Brown before he moved to San Miguel. Checking out the last sentence, you probably get why Co spent two seasons in Great Taste with a scoring average of just 9.8 points.
8 | ROBERT JAWORSKI
1975 – 1998 | PIONEER – TOYOTA
AVERAGES: 12.2PPG – 5.6RPG – 6.1APG – 1.0SPG – 958 GAMES
MILESTONES: 11700 POINTS – 5300 REBOUNDS – 5800 ASSISTS – 900 STEALS
AWARDS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
1-TIME MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
6-TIME MYTHICAL FIRST TEAM
2-TIME MYTHICAL SECOND TEAM
14-TIME CHAMPION
40 GREATEST PLAYERS IN PBA HISTORY
You can't have a PBA top ten list of all time without mentioning Robert Jaworski. Hell, if this was a Most Popular list, The Big J is probably on top of this. Love him or hate him, The Living Legend is arguably the most iconic player of all time as even the kids of this generation would remember stories from their grandfathers and uncles about how his mystique made the Toyota-Crispa rivalry legendary, as well as the rise of the Ginebra fandom. The Big J ranks first all-time in assists, fourth all-time in games played, and is in the top ten in points, rebounds, steals, and minutes played. While he never won a grand slam, with almost grand slams in 1975, 1978, and 1982, Jaworski won 14 championships in 23 seasons. In 1978, Jaworski clinched his only MVP award after averaging 20.4 points, 10.2 rebounds, 8.2 assists, and 1.8 steals per game.
With that said, this is a Best Careers list, and Robert Jaworski has probably the worst rookie season to have as a PBA player. While yeah, he was able to counter this with his longevity and he did average 14.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 5.7 assists per game during his rookie year, he also started his PBA career at the age of 29. Before the PBA, Jaworski was a MICAA mainstay and has played in several international tournaments like the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. He also won two golds, a silver, and a bronze at the FIBA Asia Championship. Jaworski was pretty much established at this point and he could have gone a similar route as that of contemporaries like Jimmy Mariano, Jun Papa, and Danny Florencio.
Like most pioneers on this list, Jaworski had a lot of missed opportunities to reap more awards like the Best Player of the Conference, Finals MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and All-Star MVP. If you think about it, Jawo could have been an 18-time all-star, and I just counted the seasons where he averaged eight points or more. He is also the only guard to average 10 rebounds, so this makes him a shoo-in for the Defensive Player of the Year award had the citation existed during his time. It's also unfortunate that the PBA had a lot of top guards in that era. While Atoy Co, Bogs Adornado, and Francis Arnaiz are top players, Jawo is one of those players who would surely benefit if the Mythical Second Team also existed back then. And although he won an MVP award in 1978, what if he didn't share scoring and leadership responsibilities with Ramon Fernandez during his time with Toyota? While Jawo is the more popular player between the two, Fernandez is the more rewarded player in terms of awards. Come to think of it, what if Jawo didn't become a playing coach? While he was the one who introduced the concept of a playing coach to the league, this dual role often felt like a curse rather than a blessing. While he was an excellent coach, there were times when he preferred coaching and there were instances when he played for just a few seconds in a game to ensure that the inbound pass was executed correctly. If not for his simultaneous coaching and playing, he might have played in more than 1,000 games, which even makes Jaworski awesome as he already is.
7 | PHILIP CEZAR
1975 – 1991 | PIONEER – CRISPA
AVERAGES: 13.2PPG – 6.4RPG – 3.4APG – 0.7SPG – 1.5BPG – 918 GAMES
MILESTONES: 12000 POINTS – 5800 REBOUNDS – 3100 ASSISTS – 500 STEALS – 1300 BLOCKS
AWARDS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
1-TIME MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
7-TIME MYTHICAL FIRST TEAM
2-TIME MYTHICAL SECOND TEAM
2-TIME GRAND SLAM MEMBER (CRISPA)
15-TIME CHAMPION
40 GREATEST PLAYERS IN PBA HISTORY
Philip Cezar has the body mold of Freddie Abuda. While this is not a bad thing, this isn't a type that should wow a first-time watcher. However, Cezar is considered one of the best PBA players of all time for a reason. He is one of the architects of Crispa's grand slams in 1976 and 1983. He is an import stopper but at the same time, he averaged at least 10 points and 5 rebounds for 14 straight seasons. He has an elegant jumper but at the same time, he has a devil-may-cry style in getting rebounds, and he is not afraid to go mano y mano against the imports and the best frontcourt players of his time.
The Scholar is also on top of a lot of all-time lists. He's sixth in points as of 2023, seventh in rebounds, and like his other moniker suggests, The Tapal King is second in blocks, and in 1980, Cezar averaged 17.8 points, 6.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.5 steals to grab his first and only MVP award. With nine Mythical Team selections and 15 championships with Crispa, Great Taste, and Ginebra, Cezar was almost a shoo-in to make the 25 Greatest Players list.
But with many pioneers of the league, Cezar faced limited opportunities for individual awards. I bet Cezar would have been a multi-time Defensive Player of the Year if the award existed back then. Also, their multiple championships could have at least given a lot of Crispa stars a Finals MVP award. Also, if Robert Jaworski had Ramon Fernandez and Francis Arnaiz to contend against (this applies to all of them,) then the same can be said with Cezar and Atoy Co, Freddie Hubalde, and Abet Guidaben. Again, being in a grand slam core has its perks, but it also puts a limit on what you can do. In Cezar's case, not only is he Crispa's second-leading scorer with 8,522 points, but he is also the team's second-leading rebounder at 3,676 and all-time leading blocker with 839. Cezar enjoyed a career that most PBA players would envy. Cezar retired after the 1991 PBA season with a championship in the First Conference and a runner-up finish in the Third Conference.
6 | BENJIE PARAS
1989 – 2003 | 1989 PBA DRAFT – SHELL – 1ST OVERALL
AVERAGES: 17.7PPG – 7.6RPG – 3.1APG – 2.3BPG – 586 GAMES
MILESTONES: 10300 POINTS – 4400 REBOUNDS – 1800 ASSISTS – 1300 BLOCKS
AWARDS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
2-TIME MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
1-TIME BEST PLAYER OF THE CONFERENCE
5-TIME MYTHICAL FIRST TEAM
3-TIME MYTHICAL SECOND TEAM
1-TIME FINALS MVP
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
2-TIME ALL-STAR MVP
4-TIME CHAMPION
40 GREATEST PLAYERS IN PBA HISTORY
Benjie Paras holds the distinction of being the PBA's sole Rookie MVP. On numerous occasions, has had the chance to duplicate the feat but rightfully so, the 33-season streak has remained sacred. When Paras won the distinction, he averaged 25.8 points, 13.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 2.6 blocks. Danny Seigle, the supposed Rookie MVP that Paras defeated a decade after winning his first MVP award, averaged 19.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 0.7 blocks during the 1999 PBA season. In order to replicate what Paras got, a player has to really step up his game during his rookie year which is easier said than done.
Known as the "Tower of Power," Benjie Paras exerted his dominance in the paint during his impressive 15-year PBA career. As Shell's icon, Paras was an explosive force capable of delivering powerful slams. He is also one-half of Shell's formidable Mutt and Jeff combo alongside Ronnie Magsanoc. The former UP duo propelled Shell to four championships - most of which also had Bobby Parks as co-conspirator. For 12 seasons, Paras averaged ten points and five rebounds per game. Benjie also had five instances where he scored 20 or more points in a season. Paras ranks 14th all-time in points scored and third all-time in blocked shots.
Danny Seigle's Rookie MVP campaign is one of the biggest what-ifs in league history. Yes, Dynamite Danny's numbers fail in comparison to Paras' rookie season but in that season, The Tower of Power averaged 15.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 2.2 blocks. Aside from winning his second MVP, Paras also won the Comeback Player of the Year award because he spent most of the '90s dealing with injuries. In fact, after winning his second MVP award, Paras was only able to play in 44 games in his last three years with Shell before calling it quits (he would make a short-lived comeback as part of the San Miguel Beermen in 2003). His injuries had a domino effect on the accomplishments he should have had. Despite his dominance, Paras is just a one-time BPC winner, a one-time Finals MVP, and a four-time champion. Because of his injuries, he is not in the Top 20 of the league's total rebounds list.
5 | BOGS ADORNADO
1975 – 1987 | PIONEER – CRISPA
AVERAGES: 20.4PPG – 2.9RPG – 2.1APG – 0.3SPG – 586 GAMES
MILESTONES: 11900 POINTS – 1600 REBOUNDS – 1200 ASSISTS
AWARDS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
3-TIME MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
7-TIME MYTHICAL FIRST TEAM
1-TIME MYTHICAL SECOND TEAM
5-TIME SEASON SCORING CHAMPION
1-TIME GRAND SLAM MEMBER (CRISPA)
10-TIME CHAMPION
40 GREATEST PLAYERS IN PBA HISTORY
Bogs Adornado was a crucial part of the Crispa Redmanizers' first-ever grand slam, and he holds the distinction of being the league's inaugural MVP winner as well as the first to win back-to-back MVP awards. Bogs personified the role of a pure scorer. He was already a master, shooting long-range bombs before the three-point line was even introduced, and he had the confidence to take any shot that came his way.
Adornado is only the fourth PBA player to have three or more MVP awards. He is the only player to win multiple MVP awards at a time when there are no BPC, Finals MVP, and even a Mythical Second Team. These three awards, alongside championships and especially when you replace the Second Team with a Mythical First Team selection, are the current requirements for a player to win the MVP awards. During his time with the U-Tex Wranglers, Adornado once tallied an impressive 64 points. To put this in perspective, only five local players in the league's history have scored 60 points or more.
Scoring was Adornado's forte. He possessed an exceptional ability to light up the scoreboard, but it's fair to say that scoring was his primary strength. There are only two players who averaged 20 points and played in 300 or more games and Adornado is the next one after Ricardo Brown. Furthermore, Adornado is the only player in league history other than three of the PBA's Mount Rushmore of imports (Norman Black, Bobby Parks, and Sean Chambers) to average 20 points in eight PBA seasons. With that said, throughout his 13 seasons in the league, he was not known for his rebounding or playmaking skills. Again, this is why this is a "Best Career" list and not a "Best Player" list. We can attribute this to a lot of things like playing within an ensemble with Adornado looking solely to score, and playing in the pioneer era. Additionally, he faced issues with injuries during his career, and he came close to retiring in the late 1970s when he suffered an injury that could have ended his career. This is why he often wore substantial protective padding to safeguard his knee. His 1976 injury paved the way for a season of inactivity, Freddie Hubalde's MVP win, and his trade to the U/Tex Wranglers. One what-if is if Adornado never had an injury. Not only is Mr. Nice Guy poised to win another MVP with the Redmanizers, but he may have thwarted the MVP wins of his other teammates.
4 | ARWIND SANTOS
2006 – 2023 | 2006 PBA DRAFT – AIR21 – 2ND OVERALL
AVERAGES: 13.8PPG – 8.2RPG – 1.5APG – 0.9SPG – 1.3BPG – 732 GAMES
MILESTONES: 10000 POINTS – 5900 REBOUNDS – 1000 ASSISTS – 600 STEALS – 900 BLOCKS
AWARDS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
1-TIME MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
2-TIME BEST PLAYER OF THE CONFERENCE
10-TIME MYTHICAL FIRST TEAM
2-TIME MYTHICAL SECOND TEAM
2-TIME FINALS MVP
3-TIME DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
2-TIME ALL-STAR MVP
9-TIME CHAMPION
40 GREATEST PLAYERS IN PBA HISTORY
Love him or hate him, you can't help but admire Arwind Santos' body of work. In some ways, his stat-grabbing goodness is part of his game as a do-it-all power forward who could play on both ends of the court. Selected second overall in the 2006 PBA Draft, which also had the likes of Kelly Williams and LA Tenorio, Spiderman is part of the Mythical Team in 12 of his 16 seasons. This ranks second all-time with Ramon Fernandez leading the way with 16. He is also tied for first place for the most number of Defensive Player of the Year awards with three. When Arwind arrived in San Miguel after three seasons with the Air21 Express, people thought his numbers would decline. Instead, Santos flourished under the SMC umbrella. Aside from nine championships and three almost grand slams, Santos won the MVP award in 2013 which gave him an automatic spot in the 40 Greatest Players list.
As of this writing, Santos is one of 17 players to score 10,000 points. He is also sixth all-time in rebounds and blocks. As far as franchise records, Santos is SMB's second-all-time leading rebounder and the current leader for most blocks.
As mentioned, Santos is a polarizing figure to root for. You get his talents but there are times when you want to root against him. He is one of the leading players behind Petronovela and while the coaching changes aren't necessarily his fault, it took time for the team to shake off this identity. And again, Arwind "lucked out" for winning an MVP award during the 2012-13 PBA season because after battling with Jay Washington for top dog status in San Miguel, he would eventually lose it upon the arrival of June Mar Fajardo.
But Arwind Santos is, for lack of a better term that I wanted to use, a stat padder. For 13 seasons, Arwind was able to average at least 0.8 in points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks. For others, this is a bad thing but if you think about it, he is not the person who did this best as Ramon Fernandez did such from 1975 to 1992. If you look at the "averages" part of every number, Santos and Fernandez are the only ones with a "1" or almost a "1" in the five major statistical categories. And add the fact that Santos, got a lot of awards and accolades, this is why he is deservingly on the upper part of this list.
3 | ALVIN PATRIMONIO
1988 – 2005 | DIRECT HIRE – PUREFOODS
AVERAGES: 17.6PPG – 7.2RPG – 2.4APG – 0.7BPG – 857 GAMES
MILESTONES: 15000 POINTS – 6100 REBOUNDS – 2000 ASSISTS – 500 BLOCKS
AWARDS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
4-TIME MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
3-TIME BEST PLAYER OF THE CONFERENCE
10-TIME MYTHICAL FIRST TEAM
1-TIME MYTHICAL SECOND TEAM
1-TIME FINALS MVP
3-TIME SEASON SCORING CHAMPION
1-TIME ALL-STAR MVP
6-TIME CHAMPION
40 GREATEST PLAYERS IN PBA HISTORY
In terms of spamming the Mythical Team card in the '90s, no one did it better than Alvin Patrimonio. From his debut in 1988 to the time when he moved to small forward at the height of the Fil-Am invasion, Captain Lionheart's post-up moves headlined the era. From 1988 to 2001, Patrimonio averaged in double digits in scoring. He is also a three-time scoring champion and scored 20 points or more on five different occasions.
He is Purefoods' all-time leading scorer and he is the only other player aside from June Mar Fajardo to win an MVP award four or more times with the same team. Aside from his four MVP trophies, he is also an 11-time Mythical Teamer, a three-time BPC winner, a one-time Finals MVP, and a six-time PBA champion. He is also the league's third all-time scorer, as well as the third member of the elite 15,000 points club. The Captain is also fifth all-time in rebounds, 15th in blocks, 8th in games played, and second in total minutes played with an average of 35.6. And before LA Tenorio broke his record, Patrimonio also played in 596 consecutive games.
In terms of putting his rivals in their place, Patrimonio's stature ruined the MVP aspirations of Nelson Asaytono, Bong Hawkins, and even his bosom buddy Jerry Codinera. He also had three scoring titles and six championships in that era.
Six championships?
The Purefoods lifer had a lot of championships as a player in the '90s, but that number fails in comparison to the superstars of the other eras. Unfortunately, Patrimonio played at a time when the level of competition was at its best. Minus the championships, Patrimonio played at an ideal time for his game. At 6'3, it would have been hard for him to play PF in the current PBA setting and the only way he can gain acclaim in the pioneer era is if he played for the two top teams - which is also an arduous task, considering the players in his position.
2 | RAMON FERNANDEZ
1975 – 1994 | PIONEER – TOYOTA
AVERAGES: 17.7PPG – 8.1RPG – 4.9APG – 1.2SPG – 1.7BPG – 1074 GAMES
MILESTONES: 18900 POINTS – 8600 REBOUNDS – 5200 ASSISTS – 1300 STEALS – 1800 BLOCKS
AWARDS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
4-TIME MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
13-TIME MYTHICAL FIRST TEAM
3-TIME MYTHICAL SECOND TEAM
2-TIME SEASON SCORING CHAMPION
1-TIME GRAND SLAM MEMBER (SAN MIGUEL)
19-TIME CHAMPION
40 GREATEST PLAYERS IN PBA HISTORY
I have Ramon Fernandez as my number one as far as Greatest PBA Players of All-Time is concerned. He is either number one or number two in the all-time records and I guess with the current PBA setup, it's hard for players to have 18,000 points, 8,000 rebounds, and for a center, 5,000 assists and 1,300 steals. Aside from the records are his individual and team accolades. As of this writing, Arwind Santos is the only player closest to the Mythical Team selections he has garnered, and most of the players with 15 or more championships are now retired.
With that said, Fernandez also gained these numbers at a time when there was no Best Player of the Conference awards, Mythical Second Teams (at least at the start), Defensive Player of the Year, and Finals MVP trophies. Yes, some awards are more significant than others, but the BPC and Finals MVP awards cannot be disregarded because they are basically the MVP of a particular part of the PBA season.
And this is why I chose the word "best career" over "best player." The problem with being the first is the tendency to miss out on a lot of individual accolades. We know Nelson Asaytono and Danny Seigle are top stars but because they are not part of the 40 Greatest Players list, we see them for their snub and not for their career contributions. In terms of "best player," it's hard to write off Don Ramon because he is number one in all-time points scored, rebounds, and blocks, and number two in total assists and steals.
1 | JUNE MAR FAJARDO
2012 – 2023 | 2012 PBA DRAFT – PETRON (SAN MIGUEL) – 1ST OVERALL
AVERAGES: 17.4PPG – 12.2RPG – 1.6PG – 1.5BPG – 428 GAMES
MILESTONES: 7400 POINTS – 5200 REBOUNDS – 600 BLOCKS
AWARDS AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
7-TIME MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
9-TIME BEST PLAYER OF THE CONFERENCE
8-TIME MYTHICAL FIRST TEAM
1-TIME MYTHICAL SECOND TEAM
4-TIME FINALS MVP
1-TIME DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
MOST IMPROVED PLAYER
9-TIME CHAMPION
Again, this could have gone either way. If you are a fan of PBA all-time numbers, then you're going to go with Ramon Fernandez. However, if you look at the best career in terms of accomplishments, June Mar Fajardo leads everyone in MVP awards, and Best Player of the Conference awards, and is tied for first in the Finals MVP haul. JMF also gained these accolades at a very young age and in spite of being with the talent-stacked San Miguel Beermen.
And if you consider the fact that Michael Jordan ruined the championship drives of Charles Barkley, Karl Malone, Patrick Ewing, and others, June Mar Fajardo is about to let deserving MVPs like Jayson Castro, Calvin Abueva, and Terrence Romeo retire without an MVP win. Fernandez won his first MVP in 1982, when Philip Cezar had already won the award and during the 80s, had some sort of an MVP duel with Abet Guidaben. The closest rival The Kraken had at that time was Arwind Santos but after his first MVP and the entry of Leo Austria as SMB coach, he basically became Fajardo's main scoring and rebounding support.
In terms of a PBA career, Fajardo only had two conferences of downtime. After that, he had a career that lives on to this day in which he is the undisputed go-to guy and for as long as he's healthy, he is always a threat to own almost all of the awards.
Did you like my list? Sound off in the comments section below.
Information credit comes from the following sources: PBA, The PBA Hardcourt Annual, the defunct PBA Online website, Rennor Galicia, the Real GM website, Philippine Basketball Reference, PBA Archives, PBA Records and Oddities, Edmon 1974, and Wikipedia.