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JAMES
Yap is proving to be a lethal weapon, more so when he is
a walking wounded.
Despite
nursing knee and groin injuries, the former Most
Valuable Player still stood out from the rest, prompting
the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Press Corps
to name him as its Smart-Accel Player of the Week for
the period February 4 to 10.
It was
the fourth such recognition for
Yap, having been previously cited October 14 to 21, November 19
to 25, with Red Bull’s Junthy Valenzuela and December 31
to January 6, with Sta. Lucia Realty’s Kelly Williams.
All
because of an unflagging mindset to do his best for his
Purefoods team.
“Ang
katwiran ko kasi, kung kaya namang maglaro, bakit hindi?”
explained Yap a day after scattering 28 points to lead
the Giants to an 83-71 win over the Bulls last Sunday
that wrapped up their semifinals series, four games to
three and clinched for them a finals seat in the Smart
Philippine Cup.
That
scorching performance came after he poured in 25 points
in a close 96-95 escape in Game Five regardless of a
strained groin he suffered after favoring his left knee
that was badly bruised the Sunday before.
“Kailangang-kailangan
kasing manalo kaya ibinuhos ko na. Alam ko namang it
will all be worth it,” he said.
“It’s
amazing to see a player rise to the challenge even after
an injury,” said Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio. “His
amazing performances in Games Five and Seven propelled
our entry to the finals.”
The
ironic thing is, he came up with his best-scoring
performance when he was supposed to be running on vapors
after playing too many minutes hard and too hard in the
series, as Red Bull coach Yeng Guiao quipped.
“Just
when people thought that he might have ran out of gas,
he surprises everybody with an amazing display of
basketball skills in the most important game of the
conference,” gushed Gregorio.
Purefoods is now gunning for a fifth crown in the
conference formerly dubbed as the All-Filipino. If
successful against Sta. Lucia in the best-of-seven
finale that starts Friday, the Giants will tie the
now-defunct Crispa’s record of five All-Filipino crowns.
That is
now Yap’s target.
“Baka
kasi mahirapang maulit na kaya ibubuhos na namin ang
makakaya,” said the MVP of the 2005-06 season.
For the
moment, he has time to savor the moment and heal his
injuries, for he has every reason to prepare for the
finals.
His
wife, actress Kris Aquino, celebrates her birthday on
Valentine’s Day and he turns 26 the day after. “Parang
birthday gift na rin sa amin kapag nanalo sa Game
One,” he said. |
