Two things, nobody can do the best in both. So Yao has to absent the Media Day and opening of the training camp in Austin. Every fans don't need to say excess stuff.
I think you're overrracting my friend. i dont think yao is gonna turnup fat and slow. yao is one of those athelets ho allways takes care of himself in a amaculate fashion duing the offseason. him missing three meaningless days of taking pictures and meeting the media is'nt somehow going to hinder he's season or even the preseason training camp for him. yao will be fine. I say more power to yao. he is doing it for a wonderfull cause. there is nothing wrong with hat our big lion (yao ) is doing.
Well, please read who and what I'm responding to. Jeff was saying it doesn't really matter whether a player comes into a training camp fit and ready, as the purpose of the training camp is for familiarizing/gelling with new coach, new players and new systems. My reply was that I agreed with him about the purpose of the training camp, but I disagree with him on the point that it does not really matter if players turning in the preseason training camp swollen meatballs, not fit and ready for the season, and will need weeks of rehabilitation/re-conditioning. Nowhere in my response did I say Yao Ming is gonna turn up fat and slow, cos he had been training and playing hard for the past 3 weeks ever since he came back from his honeymoon in Europe in August. And with the 7 games against top teams in the Australian NBL league, and the Euroleague in the future 10 days, he should be properly re-conditioned into his competitive shape and form.
hey pryuen I spoke up for you before but I have to join the guys to pile on you on this one. It is a noble cause, no doubt about it. But to say that the team has to change the preseason schedule for one player's charitable activity, no matter how important it is, is just moronic. You are extremely arrogant here.
So, is someone here going to photoshop Yao's picture into our other big guns? I want to see a picture with Yao, Scola, Tmac, Battier, Francis, Bonzi, James, Brooks, Head and Mutombo all together. I'm more concerned about the 7 games in 10 days Yao has to play....I wish there was a way he could just avoid them like a lot of NBA players. What I'm worrying is how Adelman will determine who starts and will throw the ball in to Yao and Tmac? Does Adelman start practices with Francis and have James try to beat him out.... or does he rotate the guys in and out of the first team until he sees one being clearly better than the other.... because Adelman will have to have one of those guys play on the first team in practices....
IMO Special Olympics respnosibility is far more important than 3-day practice with Rockets. No argument for that.
How will that be meaningless ?? If that is meaningless, then Big Yao should not have accepted the appointment of the official image spokesperson for Special Olympic and the Shanghai Municipality in first place. Promoting Special Olympic and the Shanghai Municipality had become his obligations/commitment when he accepted those appointments. Bear in mind that Big Yao is already an international sports figure and icon. Showing up in the very first Olympics of China (albeit it is just for the intellectually deficient/inadequate athletes), in his own home city, Shanghai, will raise alot of media coverage, public awareness and in turn attention and importance to this event. As a result, it will generate more thoughts, care, funding and welfare to the intellectually deficient/inadequate all over the world. So you still think it is meaningless ?
When did I say it WASN'T important. Good LORD, pryuen, you are frustrating when people even mildly disagree with you. I'm not a freaking idiot. Of course it is important to come to camp in shape. What I SAID is that the games that Yao plays, the practices he has and the training he does, while great, is NO substitute for working with your teammates. You know what, nevermind.
this is how it starts... missing practice to go to the special olympics in your hometown, next he'll be missing practice to go to the superbowl, then he will ask the rockets for a month off from the season to release a rap album.
you know this offseason is too long already when we have heated argument here on why should Yao be 3 days late to the training camp.
Jeff OKAY MY BAD... I might have mis-interpreted your initial post on this when you said it does not really matter whether a player comes into the training camp in his game shape or not.
