He sustained the injury during the EASL Champions Week earlier this month.
June Mar Fajardo has suffered a grade 3 medial collateral ligament (MCL) tear, San Miguel Beermen team manager Gee Abanilla confirmed to One Sports via text message on Monday.
According to Abanilla, the six-time MVP could be out for six weeks, which would definitely hurt San Miguel's PBA Governors’ Cup campaign. The Beermen are currently at third with a 7-2 win-loss record and are all but assured of a twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals.
“He has an MCL injury, grade 3, and will be out for about six weeks depending on how he responds to his rehab. I really hope he recovers well,” he said.
The injury also puts The Kraken's seventh MVP trophy in jeopardy. Fajardo looked like he was regaining his MVP form at the start of the season when he won the Best Player of the Conference award in the Philippine Cup. He was also leading the MVP race at the start of the Governors' Cup with his 28.9 statistical points—4 points clear of second-placer Scottie Thompson of Barangay Ginebra San Miguel.
During the Commissioner’s Cup, he was also sidelined for a couple of weeks due to a throat injury, but he came back just in time to lead the Beermen to the semis, where they took the Bay Area Dragons to a winner-take-all Game 5.
With Fajardo healthy in the season-ending conference, the Beermen raced to a 7-2 start before disaster struck earlier this month during the EASL Champions Week.
The 6-foot-10 behemoth checked in with under six minutes left in the opening quarter of the Beermen’s game against Ryukyu Golden Kings. Seconds later, he hurt his left knee and didn’t play for the rest of the tournament. Now, he is in danger of missing the rest of the PBA Governors' Cup.