http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/news/2002/08/16/ming_canada_ap/ VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) -- In a sneak preview starring the 7-foot-5 center the NBA is waiting for, Yao Ming stood out Friday night -- mainly because he stands so tall. Aside from one poster-worthy dunk, Yao had an inauspicious first half in his first game in North America, as China played Canada in an exhibition game Friday night. Yao scored seven points in the half: three on foul shots, two on a turnaround and two on a crowd-pleasing dunk the only time he managed to get himself open deep in the low post. He blocked one shot and altered a few others, but he also had two turnovers -- one of which came the first time he touched the ball. Yao had difficulty dealing with the physical play of a pair of undersized Canadian centers who were able to push him far from the basket in the early going. Yao adjusted as the game moved on, but he struggled to get involved in China's offense. In was only a first peek at one of the tallest players ever to enter the NBA, a 21-year-old man with enough potential to entice the Rockets to select him No. 1 the NBA draft last June. Because of a poor toss by the referee, Yao lost the opening tip to 6-foot-10 center Kevin Jobity, who played Division I college ball at Niagara. On Canada's first possession, Yao was standing about five feet away and barely moved as former St. John's player Rowan Barrett drove in for a dunk. Yao was double-teamed immediately the first time he touched the ball, and Canada easily poked it away and into the hands of Steve Nash. Yao's biggest contribution in the first six minutes was a nifty touch pass for an assist against Canada's full-court press. His dunk, in the face of Canada backup center Richard Anderson, was a highlight-reel effort that left the photographers sitting under the basket smiling. Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich spent more than an hour Thursday night meeting with Yao and Chinese coach Wang Fei at Yao's hotel room. "It had an unbelievable bed. You've never seen a bed like this. The extenuation stretched clear across the room," Tomjanovich said of Yao's accommodations. Tomjanovich had met with Yao in person only once before, earlier this summer when he flew to Beijing to meet the No. 1 pick in the draft. As a gift, Tomjanovich brought Yao a Rockets t-shirt. It did not, however, have the uniform No. 11, which Yao has already chosen. "I looked at how much information my assistant coaches sent him, and it was too much. I told him our best play might not be invented yet. I'll change the offense to fit what the team does best," Tomjanovich said. That might have come as somewhat of a surprise to Yao, who is no doubt unfamiliar with the way NBA teams change their styles to fit their particular personnel. Tomjanovich built a team in the 1990s that surrounded Hakeem Olajuwon with 3-point shooters to take advantage of the double-teams that opponents would invariably use. These days, his next challenge will be to fit Yao into a system currently built around the scoring abilities of guards Steve Francis and Cuttino Mobley. "I'm not going to critique him every time he plays. That's not my job. I'm just happy to get a look at him and get my mind churning with ideas," Tomjanovich said. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/news/2002/08/16/ming_canada_ap/
Whoever wrote this doesn't have ANYTHING on me and Ron413. (read the Yao Ming on NBA.COM TV to know what I mean.) I was watching part of it, and he looked pretty good. But his teammates(sp?0 are really bad. Even if he was in the paint, calling for the ball, they'd shoot a 3 and miss. But I read China focuses on team playing, or something, so that esplains that. They can't make layups either.
I got mixed info on this game. This writer says Yao's pushed around by the Canadian centers away from the paint, while another poster in the NBA live lookins thread said that Yao has a solid base and seems locked in the paint against them. Which one is true?
Actually I trust the posters on this board more since I think most sports writers have no clue whatsoever. I just posted what was out there. I actually found the Rudy stuff way more interesting.
Looked like to me Yao was the one doing the pushing. He would usually get good position by the basket and call for the ball. I didn't see him get many rebounds, but I didn't see many oppurtonities for him. (stupid NBATV.) He usually got the board if he was by the basket. That's what I saw, anyway.
Final stats for Ming 17 points 5 rebounds and 5 blocks,2 steals.6 out of 6 from the field 5 out of 5 free throws.He didn't get more shots because of the guards but got pushed around by some of the smaller players. Pretty impressive,this guy is no Bradley.Once he gets stronger he will be a very good player.
Panda, There was one weakness that I saw in Yao's game. When he's in the post, he's "locked in" because of his big/strong legs (wide stance too). This is good...but... ...his back muscles/strength, or ability to *back players down* seems to be a little weak. Players like Zo, Shaq, and Duncan can *lean* on players and *back them down* because they have a strong back and some weight to put on their opponents. Thus, Yao will have to work hard to strengthen his upper body so he'll be able to back players down. Now, this doesn't mean he can't score. Heck, the guy is so tall, and has such fundamentally sound shot, that it's going to be hard to block/contest his shot. His shooting technique reminds me of Larry Bird's; the way that Bird used to put it above his head before he shot the ball. His backcourt (facing/driving) game reminds me of Dirk Nowitzski. His frontcourt (post) game reminds me of Paul Gasol.
is it just me or do the china team jerseys look really cool. I think the rock's should model their new uniforms after the chinese national team. Use the same color scheme and, heck, chinese letters would be pretty cool too.
DavidS: Thanks for the clarification. The part on Yao's upper body is what I though about too. Yao'll hold his own defensively but he needs more upper body strength/bulk to gain leverage during post up.
There is no question this is true, however, you have to remember that, in international play, the rules allow the defensive players to use their hands to grab and move players around. That is a big no-no in the NBA. At best, they are allowed one hand or a bent arm against a low post defender. Granted, the strength factor is significant, but sometimes international play can get a bit like wrestling in the paint because of the rules. By the same token, don't take the blocks to literally either. You can swat the ball out of the hoop and off of the rim in international play as well.
There is no doubt that Yao needs to work on a lot of things when he enters the NBA, as does any rookie. But from what I've seen, I now have a very good feeling about his chance to succeed in the NBA. I think that Ming may lead the league in FG Percentage next year.
I have no idea what that writer was watching, but from what I saw from nbatv, Yao looked good. Hes just on a bad team. How can the guy dominate if he doesnt touch the ball. I noticed he does get held by the opposer when he backs down or fight for rebounds. He realizes that he needs to get stronger according to what I read from article. Give this guy some time to adjust physically and mentally to the NBA, and he will be awesome. He's not going to overpower people like Shaq, but I think he will be more like Hakeem in mobility and shooting touch. Man, I can't wait to see this guy in a Rockets uni!
