Pingris turns emotional after trade of long-time teammate Yap

Screengrab of Marc Pingris’ post.

Though he’s heartbroken over James Yap’s departure from Star, Marc Pingris understands that it’s all part of the business of basketball.

“Sad naman kami lahat eh,” the energetic forward said. “Nakakabigla, pero ganon talaga ang buhay ng player. Akala ko sabay na kami mag-retire dito sa Purefoods nila PJ (Simon), pero ganoon talaga. Basta ang important dyan, hindi nawawala ang pagkakaibigan at samahan namin.”

Teammates for 11 years, the trio of Yap, Pingris, and Simon helped the Purefoods franchise win seven titles, including the Grand Slam under coach Tim Cone in the 2013-14 season.

In a separate Instagram post on Wednesday night, Pingris shared a photo of the three hugging during one of their games with the then-San Mig Coffee.

The caption wrote: “Salamat ng marami tol!!! Sa lahat ng pagsasama sa mga panalo at talo. Sad ako pero ganyan talaga ang buhay, minsan nasa taas, minsan nasa baba, pero wag mawalan ng pag-asa dahil nasa likod mo ang tunay mong barkada.”

Pingris knows what it feels like to be in Yap’s shoes, but is confident his good friend will try to perform at his peak with the rebuilding Elasto Painters.

“Alam ko rin na maraming nalungkot na mga fans at mga family dahil ganyan din ang naramdaman ko dati noong nalipat ako sa San Miguel. Pero kailangan mo pa rin mag-laro para sa family mo at sa mga fans mo,” he said.