KING JAMES STANDS TALLEST AT START OF RP CUP

Player of the Week October 14 to 21

THERE may be rules changes that have affected the teams’ plays in the ongoing Smart PBA Philippine Cup, but there’s one constant thing: Those who are quick to adjust will surely stand out.

Like 2005-06 Philippine Cup titlist Purefoods Tender Juicy Hotdogs, which has charged to a pristine 2-0 win-loss record for a share of the early lead with Magnolia, and former MVP James Yap, who was adjudged the season’s first Smart-Accel Player of the Week for the period Oct. 14-21 by the PBA Press Corps.

Yap averaged 26.5 points in Purefoods’ 96-89 and 112-97 victories over Sta. Lucia Realty and Talk ‘N Text, respectively, earning for him the scribes’ nod over the likes of Magnolia’s Danny Seigle and Alaska’s Willie Miller.

Seigle averaged 23.0 points for the Beverage Masters while Miller, the reigning MVP, led all scorers with a 34.0 clip, but the Aces are among the early tailenders with a 0-2 start.

No such bind for Purefoods and mainly because of Yap, who seemed to be picking up from where he left off after ending the 2006-07 season with back-to-back 40-point games against Welcoat and Coca-Cola.

Yap also had to overcome a brief period of adjustment to the new rules being implemented this season that allow for more physicality in the games.

Truth be told, the usually placid 2006 MVP almost blew his top after being engaged by Realtor Norman Gonzales in a physical and mental war in their league debut last Wednesday.

“Ang lagi kasi niyang sinasabi, babanatan niya raw ako. Sabi ko naman, ‘E, di banatan mo,’” related Yap. "First time kong napikon sa laro. Pero sino ang hindi, kung babanatan ka?

“Ang dami ko ngang tama. Buti na lang naka-padding ako,” he added, lifting a hem of his shorts to reveal his protected groin area.

It was to be expected he would be the focus of such games.

Yap already had 17 of his total 29 points in the opening quarter, the most by any player in a period since Red Bull’s Mike Hrabak had the same output in the first quarter of a111-112 loss to TNT in Game Five of their Fiesta Conference semifinals last June 29.

Against the Phone Pals in Dumaguete last Saturday, Yap finished with 24 points, highlighted by a three-pointer and a lay-up that sparked a decisive third-quarter romp that had Purefoods breaking away from a 53-all standoff.