Even before the semifinals started, Ginebra coach Tim Cone already pointed to James Yap as one of Rain or Shine's biggest weapons that the Gin Kings needed to prepare for.
As Yap's former coach, Cone has extensive knowledge of how dangerous the two-time PBA MVP can be. That's why he asked his players to watch Yap's 27-point explosion against GlobalPort in the quarterfinals and discuss how they can prevent that from happening.
"We took him very seriously, as you have to, because he's a great player. There's a reason why he won MVPs, not just one but multiple MVPs. And there's a reason why he led us to a Grand Slam," said Cone, referring to Yap's key role in the incredible Grand Slam feat of the Purefoods franchise back in the 2013-2014 season.
As Cone predicted, Yap once again delivered for the Elasto Painters in Game 1 of the semis on Sunday. He sparked his team's comeback attempt, trimming down an 18-point deficit to a manageable six-point gap entering the fourth period.
"We were losing him off our double-teams. We were losing him and [he's] hitting threes and knocking them down. We had to change our defense because of that," said Cone.
To limit Yap's impact on the floor, Cone tasked a much taller Justin Brownlee to defend him.
"We put Justin on him. You know, so he played against a guy who's four or five inches taller, and as quick, and as athletic as James, so it was a tough match-up for James all game long," explained Cone.
"I knew that we had to put the clamps on him to win this game. So we put our best, most athletic defender on him. When Justin didn't guard him, then it was Sol Mercado, our two best defenders," he added.
The defensive strategy paid off as Yap, who scored 15 points in the first three quarters, was completely shut down in the final frame. Ginebra padded its lead to as high as 24 points before taking a 102-89 win.
Despite his size advantage, Brownlee admitted that he had a hard time staying in front of Yap and contesting his shots.
"Guarding him is pretty tough because he shoots the ball very well. He has a high release, so its hard to block and hard to contest. He also can dribble, get in the lane, and create scoring opportunities for himself," he said. But Brownlee and the Gin Kings are up to the challenge if that's what it takes to defeat the Elasto Painters and secure a finals seat.
"It's definitely gonna be a challenge, not only [for] me but whoever's guarding him," Brownlee said. "He's an incredible player. I'm looking forward to the challenge in the coming games."