MANILA, Philippines ? (UPDATE) This is an entirely different ball game that James Yap will try to win, not for Derby Ace in the Philippine Basketball Association, but for fatherhood and family.

Finally breaking his silence almost a week after estranged wife Kris Aquino made a startling announcement to the end of their marriage on nationwide television, the on-court gunslinger said he would fight to save their marriage.

?I believe in the importance of having an intact family,? Yap said in a statement, written in Filipino, released to members of the sports media. ?That?s why I will fight to keep my family with Kris intact whatever happens.

?I know that every family encounters tests like these,? he continued. ?Kris and I have made it through such tests before and I don?t think that this would be the right time for us to surrender [to such tests].?

Married to the superstar endorser and talk show host Aquino for the last six years, Yap has a son by the actress, three-year-old James, and the statement that Yap?s camp released certainly emphasized that he did not want to lose the role of playing father to his son.

?Baby James, I am doing this because of my love for our family,? Yap wrote. ?I want to keep our family intact.?

By this, Yap could have meant having to leave their One Roxas condominium home in Makati earlier in the week so that Kris and Baby James could stay there.

According to highly placed sources who asked not to be identified, the cager himself packed his things and moved into a borrowed condo because Aquino didn?t want to come home while he was there.

The same source swore no third party was involved, claiming that both could have just been ?stressed out,? although he said that both have been cold to each other for the last two to three weeks.

Yap also sounded off an appeal to Aquino, whose announcement came months after she reportedly stormed the house of an alleged girlfriend of James in Valle Verde in Pasig.

?Kris, we have gone through a lot of more serious problems than this one,? Yap said. ?I have kept quiet all those times out of respect for our family. I love you and my son and Josh [Aquino?s son by Philip Salvador] whom I have considered as my own."

?Another thing, I also promised Mom Cory (the late former President Corazon Aquino) that I will always take care of our family,? Yap said. ?Kris and I also swore to Mom Cory that we will never separate.?

Yap also said that he got the blessing of newly elected President Benigno Aquino that he would miss his inauguration last Wednesday through text. He said that the President said that he understood his situation fully well.

?I am hopeful that the right time will come and that Kris and I will be able to solve everything.?

Yap has kept his concentration on the basketball floor, with Derby Ace coach Ryan Gregorio heaping praises on his superstar guard for keeping his emotions in check and doing his best for the team.

The Llamados have a crucial knock-out game against sister team San Miguel on Friday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

?You cannot see any difference,? Gregorio told the Philippine Daily Inquirer. ?He has this laid back demeanor that never changes whether he is excited or depressed. He still looks and acts the same."

?Fortunately for all of us [in the team], he has spiked his level of performance and we are on target,? Gregorio said.