At least he was able to play during the playoff run. Jeezus Christ, Drexler played an instrumental role in the 2nd championship, AND he was a houston legend before that. How can Yao have a larger impact than Drexler when he hasn't done anything? One 2nd round appearance is greater than contributing a 2nd ring? LOL, Tmac has had a greater impact than Yao when it came to the playoffs.
No its not. All star appearances and all-nba teams are a dime a dozen. Does Yao even have a 1st team all nba? Tmac has more all star appearances and all-nba teams than Yao, does that mean you retire number 1 and number 3?
And in your opinion, an instrumental role in a championship run is worthy of a jersey retirement, even if that player doesn't spend much time with the team? Do you think Shaq deserves to have his jersey retired by Miami? Like I said, I feel that Drexler's ties to Houston are the main reasons his jersey was retired. Hasn't done anything? 5 all-nba teams is a pretty impressive. And I'd say that 5 all-nba teams/6 all-star appearances/face of the franchise is greater than 1 all-nba team/1 all-star team/contributing to a ring.
You're wrong. It is. Really? Yao has 6 all-star appearances. McGrady has 3. Is 3 > 6? Yao has 5 all-nba teams. McGrady has 3. Hmm.... I guess if 3 > 6, then 3 > 5, right? In all seriousness though, I think the Rockets would've retired McGrady's jersey had he not antagonized the front office.
Hakeem never brought in that many fans for the Rockets, but there was no debate on his number being retired. why is that?
4 years back in the old days weren't exactly short. Those guys back then completed college first and entered the NBA at 24-26 years old. Shaq spent like 2 years in Miami, but if Miami decided to retirehis number I wouldn't be surprised. They retired MJ even if he didn't play for them. And I don't see anything wrong with that. Drexler was part of the legendary Phi Slamma Jamma in college, and the HOUSTON Rockets being in Houston retiring Drexler would be a lot like Denver retiring Billups' number even if he only played 1 year with them. What is your obsession with being the face of a franchise? Stephon Marbury was the face of the NY Knicks when he played there, didn't mean they will retire his jersey anytime soon. While 5 all-nba teams are impressive, Yao Ming was injured every year he won that award. There's no point in getting all-nba if you sit out on the biggest stage: the playoffs. Yeah we had an all nba talent, but he's always in a suit when you need him the most. The HR retiring Yao would be like Houston retiring Ralph Sampson's number, or Chicago retiring J-William's number. Or Celtics retiring Len Bias' number.
Where do you get this stuff? Tmac's individual accomplishments blow Yao Ming out of the water: 2× NBA Scoring Champion: 2003 (32.1), 2004 (28.0) 7× NBA All-Star: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 7× All-NBA: First Team: 2002, 2003 Second Team: 2001, 2004, 2007 Third Team: 2005, 2008 NBA Most Improved Player Award: 2001 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tracy_Mcgrady#NBA_career_statistics I love both of these players since they're the reasons I became a rocket fan in the first place, and I think both guys deserve to be in the hall of fame. But IMHO they don't deserve to have their numbers retired because the Yao-Mac era didn't really achieve anything in the playoffs. Putting up Yao (and if they put Yao, they better retire Tmac's number as well)'s number in the rafters would be a glaring reminder of that failed era, and I'd rather put it behind me and look forward to the new generation. Plus what would it say? One second round appearance in 10 years is worthy of jersey retirement? lol
I think he meant as a Rocket. But no, Tmac/Yao do not deserve to be in the HOF or have their jerseys retired. Sad for me to say b/c TMac was on his way to become an all-timer/legend before injuries hit him in 05-06. You can't be in the HOF/jersey retired if you're remembered mostly for being injured/soft/no playoff success.
Entered college at 24-26 years old? Do you think they got graduate degrees before entering the draft? And no, Miami won't retire Shaq's number. Nope, nothing wrong with that. But my point was that based on his Rocket performance alone, Drexler didn't deserve to have his jersey retired. Being the face of the franchise indicates a greater probability of jersey retirement. Yeah, too bad none of that matters. It's a certainty that his jersey will be retired. Now you're just being a dumbass.
Like I've said before, Yao has 5 all-nba selections with one team and has a great relationship with management. Can you name anyone else with similar characteristics who doesn't deserve to have his jersey retired? If not, maybe you should take a step back and re-evaluate your expectations.
Dude in one of my original posts, I said the chances of Yao's jersey being retired is high, 80% for reasons not on-court related. But that doesn't mean I agree with it. What is Yao's remembered the most for his career as a Rocket. Make a poll or ask general NBA fans: he's injured all the damn time. Again, it would suck to have a jersey retired for a player who is primarily remembered for: being injured/no playoff success/soft. THAT'S HIS LEGACY. You really can't condone your team to retire a player's jersey who has that type of legacy do you?
