If Kelly Williams were like everyone else, he would’ve spent the entire 12 months or so enjoying the perks of retirement.
If Kelly Williams were like everyone else, he would’ve been watching the 2025 PBA Philippine Cup Finals between the TNT Tropang 5G and San Miguel Beermen as a fan, not banging bodies with this mammoth of a man named June Mar Fajardo.
If Kelly Williams were like everyone else, he would’ve been at home resting his 43-year-old body, not getting treatment and preparing for the next great war with that mammoth of a man named June Mar Fajardo.
But as Kelly Williams has shown throughout PBA Season 49, and most recently in the PBA Philippine Cup Finals, he isn’t like everybody else.
Williams has shown he’s a true-blue hooper, the kind who plays because he loves the game. He has shown that he’s a warrior, the kind who doesn’t back down from any challenge—whether advancing age, a high ankle sprain, or that mammoth of a man named June Mar Fajardo.
Yes, Kelly Williams isn’t like everybody else. He’s the special kind of ageless Father Time has been trying to conquer but just can’t—at least not yet.
Saved the Best for Last: Kelly Williams Goes Toe-to-Toe with JMF
In a long season, Father Time almost always makes sure that the oldest players will break down first. But it appears Father Time hasn’t quite figured out Williams, affectionately called “Kuya Kels” by some in the TNT organization and many of its fans.
Rather than slow down as TNT’s Season 49 campaign stretched to 75 games in these PBA Finals, Williams seemingly got stronger and better. In Games 1 and 2, the former no. 1 overall pick was solid as always, putting up 10.0 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 3.5 assists in 28 minutes of action.
Then, with Poy Erram injured, RR Pogoy and Jordan Heading hobbled, and Calvin Oftana held in check, Kelly Williams went from contributor to one of the Tropa’s best and most reliable players in these Finals. Williams hiked his scoring to 14.0 points while also contributing 5.0 rebounds and 3.25 assists in 36 minutes of game time. Even more impressive, he made life a living hell for Fajardo, the reigning Best Player of the Conference who’s widely regarded as local hoops’ GOAT.
No Rest for the Weary—And None Was Needed
Yes, Williams played 36 minutes in each of Games 3, 4, 5, and 6—on an injured right ankle! Williams had suffered a high ankle sprain in Game 2 of TNT’s semis series against the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters and was sidelined for the remainder of that intense faceoff. And, heading to the Finals, it was yet unsure if Williams would be go to go, or if he’d be in good enough to give the Tropa quality minutes.
Bum ankle and all, Williams gave it a go—never mind if he knew he’d spend most of every game matched up against an eight-time MVP who cleared him by three full inches and outweighed him by at least 50 pounds.
Williams gave it a go, all right, and while the numbers—12.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists for Williams, 21.3 points, 12.0 rebounds, 6.5 assists for Fajardo—show he got outplayed by The Kraken, true fans know Williams more than held his own against the GOAT of the PBA. He took a beating, too, the entire series, but Williams just kept coming… and coming… coming. It was, to say the least, an inspiring show of force for the 43-year-old veteran. He was supposed to be slowing down already yet showed he still has a few gears left to tap into. He was old, he was hurt, he was tired and worn down. But in the last three games of Season 49, he was still one of the best players of the PBA Finals.
In the end, Kuya Kels and his Tropa came up short of what would’ve been a historic Grand Slam. But it was definitely not for a lack of trying.
Just ask Kelly Williams, who is evidently not like most of us.
