The marital woes of basketball star James Yap and celebrity host-actress Kris Aquino have been the talk of the town. Kris was the first to confess publicly that, this time, her marriage was really on the rocks. Entertainment media went full blast on the controversy.

For weeks James remained silent until Showbiz Central interviewed  him yesterday, August 29. First, the show aired the life story of  the two-time Most Valuable Player (2005-06 and 2009-10) of the Philippine Basketball Association. Then he appeared live to answer questions by Showbiz Central host Pia Guanio.

For starters Pia asked, what has he got has that pumps up his fans whenever he plays?

Big Game James replied, "'Yun nga, talagang pagdating kasi sa court, e talagang naka-focus ka so, no reaction kasi. "Yun ang sinasabi nila sa akin na NR [no reaction] daw ako pag naka-shoot ako ng big shot. So, siguro iyon ang nagustuhan ng fans sa akin."

Facing trials in life doesn't seem to affect James whenever he's on the court. How does he do this?

"Iniisip ko talaga na ang mga tao na nanonood sa akin, e kailangan mapasaya ko sila kasi kumbaga, gusto ko talagang magbigay ng inspirasyon sa kanila, lalong lalo na sa mga bata," James said. "So, pagdating kasi sa problema, siyempre sa bahay doon ka nag-iisip. Pagdating sa court, iyon na lang iisipin mo, kung papaano mo sila mapasaya. Ang distraction talagang tanggalin sa isip mo."

It's only human to become  distracted by problems. How does James  vent it all out?

He smiled,"Ganoon ang ginagawa ko. doon ko na lang binubuhos...kumbaga, iyon na lang ang motivation. Kailangan ko talagang ma-prove ko sa sarili ko na kahit may problema ako, siyempre professional tayo at dapat hindi maapektuhan sa work natin."

BASKETBALL CAREER. James Yap hails from Escalante City, Negros Occidental. When he was growing up he never imagined that  basketball would be his ticket to fame. He'd like the youth to remember his lowly beginnings and perhaps draw inspiration from there.

"Siyempre, parang hindi ko ma-imagine na...dati naglalaro lang ako sa semento, nadadapa ka at nakapaa ka lang," said James. "So, parang sobrang hindi ko ma-imagine kung saan ako ngayon. Gusto ko talaga makita ng kabataan iyon na kung saan ako nanggaling at kung saan ako ngayon. Gusto ko maisip nila iyon."

 The great thing about being good in basketball is the chance to get scholarships from top colleges. James took advantage of that.

"As a basketball player and student, e kailangan mo talagang mag-sacrifice," said James. "Siyempre, hindi mo maiiwasan sa ensayo na sobrang nakakapagod. Kailangan mo din pumasok kasi iyon ang importante sa buhay natin, ang mag-aral."

Has his great career in basketball changed anything about himself?

"Kung ano ako dati, gaoon pa rin. Mahiyain," he admitted. "Hindi ako nagbago at doon na din nila ako nagustuhan siguro. Kung ano man na-achieve ko sa buhay, talagang hindi ako nagpapakita na ganoon ako, ganyan. Ganoon pa din pagkakakilala nila sa akin."

Showing that he is proud of his roots, he greeted the people of his hometown by saying, "Sobrang proud ako na galing akong Escalante. Happy ako na na-appreciate nila ako. Sobrang happy ako na galing akong Escalante."