39 Facts About Ramon Fernandez

Ramon Fernandez stood at 6'4 barefoot during his prime but due to mild gigantism, he grew to 6'5 during his final seasons.

Ramon Fernandez scored 18,996 points to finish as the PBA's all-time scoring leader.

Ramon Fernandez is the PBA's all-time leader in rebounds, blocked shots, and free throws made, playing minutes and second all-time in assists, games played and steals.

Ramon Fernandez played for five teams in his entire PBA career starting with the Toyota, Manila Beer, Tanduay, Purefoods and San Miguel.

Ramon Fernandez played in multiple International Tournaments as a member of the Philippine basketball team.

Ramon Fernandez is regarded as one of the greatest players to have ever played in the Philippine Basketball Association with tenured analysts and former players who had the chance to play with and against him citing him as arguably the greatest ever.

Ramon Fernandez was a member of several national teams, these include the teams for the 1972 ABC Under-18 Championship, the 1973 ABC Championship, the 1974 FIBA World Championship, the 1974 Asian Games and the 1990 Asian Games.

Ramon Fernandez moved to the Philippine Basketball Association in 1975, when the Toyota Comets became one of the nine pioneer teams of the league.

Ramon Fernandez was the 1982 PBA Most Valuable Player, the only time he achieved the award during his days with the fabled Toyota team.

Ramon Fernandez won the 1984 MVP award, his second, during his first season with the Lucio Tan-owned franchise, but never led the team to the championship until he was shipped in the middle of the 1985 season to Tanduay for Abet Guidaben.

Ramon Fernandez would become playing coach, his first coaching stint, of a young team composed of Jerry Codinera, Jojo Lastimosa, Al Solis, Glenn Capacio and later Alvin Patrimonio.

However, despite leading his team to the "triple crown" that season, Ramon Fernandez narrowly lost to rookie Benjie Paras in the MVP balloting, denying the then 36-year old veteran a fifth MVP plum.

In 1990, Ramon Fernandez was a member of the Philippine basketball team that won a silver medal in the Beijing Asian Games.

Ramon Fernandez was supposed to participate in the 1994 Asian Games team, but begged off due to an injury.

In 1984, Ramon Fernandez was five assists away from averaging in triple-double the whole season.

Ramon Fernandez ended his PBA career as the all-time leader in most points scored with 18,996, second in assists with 5,220, first in defensive rebounds with 6,435, second in offensive rebounds behind Guidaben with 2,217, first in overall rebounds with 8,652, first in minutes played with 36624:30, second in games played, first in blocks with 1,853, and second in steals with 1,302.

Ramon Fernandez ended with career averages of 17.7 points per game, 8.1 rebounds per game, 4.9 assists per game, 1.2 steals per game, and 1.7 blocks per game in 1,074 games.

In 2003, Ramon Fernandez was named the Commissioner of the Collegiate Champions League tournament.

Ramon Fernandez became the Commissioner of the now-inactive United Regional Basketball League during its only run in 2004.

Ramon Fernandez ventured in several business opportunities and is currently based in Cebu, managing his flourishing "Suka ni El Presidente" brand of bottled spiced vinegar.

In 2016, Ramon Fernandez was appointed as one of the four commissioners of the Philippine Sports Commission.

In 2018, Ramon Fernandez was appointed to the Board of Directors for UGE Philippines, a local leader in solar energy solutions for the commercial and industrial sector - a subsidiary of UGE International.

Ramon Fernandez first became involved with UGE in 2015 due to an interest in renewable energy advocacy.

Ramon Fernandez became Officer in Charge of the Philippine Sports Commission in lieu of Chairperson Butch Ramirez.

Ramon Fernandez is remembered as one of the most popular players during the PBA's golden years and is one of the most prominent faces in Philippine basketball, even to this day.

Ramon Fernandez remains the poster-boy of many a PBA Legends Reunion game in the country and abroad.

Ramon Fernandez is known for his dribbling skills, uncanny passing ability, perimeter jumpers, and unstoppable high or low post moves.

Ramon Fernandez is well known for his trademark one handed running shot dubbed as "the elegant shot".

Ramon Fernandez is perhaps the most ambidextrous player to have played the game since Carlos Loyzaga a generation before him.

Ramon Fernandez had an ambidextrous hook shot that was almost impossible to stop and a weird-looking variation of a lay-up that was executed while "fading away" from the basket which made it equally intriguing.

Ramon Fernandez's "elegant shot" often came after a right-handed cross-over dribble and moving away from a defender.

Ramon Fernandez used pivot moves, pump fakes, lookaway or no-look passes, looping shots, fadeaways and an array of what seemed to be trick shots from near or under the basket that he executed to perfection.

Ramon Fernandez was doing this before Kevin McHale was doing his moves worthy of a chapter in an NBA playbook.

Ramon Fernandez owned what was perhaps the craziest no-look pass that was executed on Philippine hardwood: an assist initiated as a fake behind-the-back pass going to one direction only to go the opposite direction at the precise moment when the recipient is ready to receive the pass.

Ramon Fernandez did this in front of a capacity crowd on May 30,2003 during the Crispa Redmanizers vs Toyota Super Corollas Reunion game at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Ramon Fernandez's pinpoint passing ability was so devastating to opponents because he often executed them at critical junctures of the game, either coming from his right or left hand.

Philip Cezar and Abe King, two premier defenders of local players and imports alike, in television interviews, always said that Ramon Fernandez was the toughest assignment they ever had to handle.

Ramon Fernandez was one of the least athletic players to have laced on a pair of sneakers in the history of the PBA.

Ramon Fernandez was too thin for a center who had to go up against imports who usually had more muscle and speed than he did.