JMF’s All-Star Week mission: Add the three-pointer to his arsenal

BACOLOD CITY—June Mar Fajardo was quick to play down his chances of winning the big man edition of the three-point shootout, which will be introduced for the first time in the PBA All-Star Weekend here.“Maybe a 60 to 70 percent chance. That’s already a conservative assessment,” Fajardo said in Filipino after being informed of taking part in Saturday’s event at University of St. La Salle Coliseum here.

Fajardo will take the place of Mo Tautuaa as San Miguel’s representative in the shootout that replaces the Slam Dunk contest.

PBA commissioner Willie Marcial said it was Fajardo himself who requested to participate, perhaps to test himself against fellow bigs, some of which are known to knock down shots from beyond the arc.Fajardo, Marcial said, was on the initial list of participants before being replaced by Tautuaa owing to his calf injury during the Commissioner’s Cup Finals.

Past seasons have seen Fajardo shy away from the three-point shot mainly because of his dominance in the paint.

Stats provided by chief statistician Fidel Mangongon bared that Fajardo has made 14 of 49 threes since starting his career in 2012, almost half of the attempts have come from the past two seasons.

He’s 11-of-23 in that stretch, including 6-of-13 in the ongoing 48th season.

“I want to improve my shooting, which I could add to my game because everyone knows that I’m known to play inside,” he said. “If I could add the long outside shot, it would help me a lot.

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“The coaches have also given me the confidence to take those shots, but they remind me not to fall in love too much on taking threes,” added Fajardo.

Cast of ‘shooters’

Fajardo will take on Barangay Ginebra’s Ralph Cu, Blackwater’s Christian David, Converge’s Keith Saldivar, Meralco’s Raymond Almazan, NLEX’s Dave Marcelo, NorthPort’s JM Calma, Phoenix’s Jason Perkins, Rain or Shine’s Santi Santillan, Terrafirma’s Isaac Go and TNT’s Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser in the shootout.The regular three-point contest will see Magnolia’s Paul Lee defend his title against Ginebra’s Maverick Ahanmisi, Blackwater’s James Yap, Converge’s Alec Stockton, Meralco’s Chris Newsome, NLEX’s Robbie Herndon, NorthPort’s Arvin Tolentino, Phoenix’s Kenneth Tuffin, Rain or Shine’s Andrei Caracut, San Miguel’s Marcio Lassiter, Terrafirma’s Javi Gomez de Liano and TNT’s Calvin Oftana. INQ