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Jimmy Alapag was among those who congratulated Peter June Simon when the 40-year-old announced his retirement from the game, ending one of the best underdog stories the local cage has seen.
Makilala’s proud son North Cotabato took to social media Wednesday to let it be known that he is hanging up his sneakers forever after 16 seasons at PBA, which he spent entirely with the Purefoods franchise.
“Congratulations on a Hall of Fame career, my friend! I always had my highest respect! One of the best,” Alapag commented on Simon’s post on Instagram, which has almost 19,000 likes as of this post.
Simon was selected by the now-defunct St. Lucia as the 43rd overall pick in the 2001 PBA Draft, but it wasn’t until 2004 that he played professionally after signing as a rookie free agent with Purefoods.
Alapag, at the time, was already in his second year in the league with Talk N Text, and they would eventually cross paths countless times, including reunions at the Big Dance.
And for the decorated general, Simon was the toughest he had ever defended, a confession he made during his guest appearance on 2OT, presented by SMART on August 29.
“Easy. PJ Simon. I had nightmares about that one-arm float with him pointing at me. One of the best,Alapag said on the podcast hosted by veteran broadcasters Carlo Pamintuan and Magoo Marjon.
The six-time PBA champion even recalled playing physical just to slow down the 5-foot-11-inch slasher, but to no avail.
And to make it even challenging, the player-turned-coach said, is how Simon performed despite all the blows.
“He would never say a word, which made it even more difficult! Because I would do everything: push him away from the block, hit his arm, hold him. “ Alapag shared, smiling.
“Nothing worked.”
Simon is undoubtedly one of the most trusted scorers in the game, which is why he earned the nickname of Scoring Apostle. He may never have been crowned a scoring champion, but there should be no question how worthy he was to Purefoods.
The two-time Mr. Quality Minutes recipient helped the legendary ball club win eight championships, including, of course, the rare Grand Slam feat in 2014, the same season that he was named to the Mythical Second Team.
“But, you know, he’s one of the best scorers to ever play in the PBA.”
