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John Paul Erram has proven every bit that he deserves the trust NLEX is giving him after emerging as the 2019 Cignal-PBA Press Corps Player of the Week for the period of January 28-February 3. Acquired by NLEX in an offseason trade with with Blackwater, Erram has served as a solid inside presence for the Road Warriors in the 2019 PBA Philippine Cup. The energetic Erram stood tall on the defensive end, swatting away a potential game-tying basket by Ranidel de Ocampo in the dying seconds to lift NLEX to a pulsating 87-83 win over Meralco in Antipolo City. NLEX coach Yeng Guiao said he's no longer surprised to see Erram rise to the occasion, especially on the defensive end. "That's really the role Poy Erram plays for us, defensively. I'm not surprised he did that because that's his role for the team," Guiao said of his player.  Erram delivered all-around numbers of 12 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and a game-high five blocks to help NLEX notch its second straight win after a 0-3 start. Erram, who is averaging 16.6 points, 7.4 rebounds, a conference-best 4.0 blocks and 3.2 assists per game, beat Phoenix forward Calvin Abueva, Ginebra's Greg Slaughter, along with Rain or Shine's James Yap and rookie Javee Mocon for the weekly citation. Meanwhile, CJ Perez emerged the unanimous choice as the first ever recipient of the PBA Press Corps Rookie of the Month for January. Perez edged three other fellow talented rookies for the inaugural citation: Robert Bolick of NorthPort, Blackwater's Abu Tratter, and Javee Mocon of Rain or Shine. The former Lyceum standout guided Columbian Dyip to an even 2-2 record in his first four games in the season-opening Philippine Cup. He has made his presence felt with the Dyip in both scoring and rebounding with averages of 16.0 points and 7.8 rebounds per game, while adding 4.0 assists and 2.0 steals (tied for team-best). Perez's arrival obviously reinvigorated the Columbian franchise which could only show a single victory in this same All-Filipino conference last year.
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