Why only they needed to? Why not fronted Yao in every games when it increased their team chances of winning. Only selected games?
The NBA's Last Real All-Star Center. Well-rounded Never Say Die Attitude Soft Touch Great Free Throw Shooter Clutch Slightly above average passer for big man Unstoppable Post Moves Never Asked to Be Traded Never had any aspiration of being a star People nowadays go crazy over a center for averaging 12-8 *cough* Roy Hibbert *cough*, talk about a lack of standards and dominance.
Yao was a very good player. He had superior offensive skills but he could be slowed by fronting defenses. He was a decent defender mainly due to his size clogging the lane. He was really a poor rebounder for someone his size. He was the third best center in Rockets history. Time will tell if Dwight Howard passes him in Rockets all time great centers. The worst thing about Yao was his commitment to the Chinese national team that kept him playing b-ball all year. At his size it wore him down too early. If only the Chinese would have let him just play for the NBA I am sure his career could have been extended at least a few more years.
Um...you know that defense is part of the game of basketball too, right? It's not all about the offensive stats.
Both Yao and Dwight are good for their era. Neither would've been a top tier center in the 90's, 80's, and maybe 70's.
For a minute there he was the best player in the league and even Barkley said as much on TNT, saying he was the MVP up to that point. I think it's was his 3rd or 4th season. And then the injuries started..
If you tried to front shaq he would just go dunk the ball because he could go catch the ball and dunk it.
My personal thoughts on Yao. 1. On a personal level, the Rocket I cared most about. Mainly because he was the only Rockets star I watched from beginning to end. I followed him from his draft all the way to his final few games at the start of the 2010 season through thick and thin. 2. If there was a way the basketball gods could've turned on "no injury" for Yao's career, I truly believe he'd be considered in the Robinson/Ewing level of centers. Perhaps higher with a championship or two. Above the Mutumbo/Mourning level. If you go back and look at his final fully healthy season, his 4th year, you would say he's a lock to be a future superstar. 3. That said, big men tend to have injuries and Yao had injuries. Taken injuries into account, he's a fringe HOF and an inconsistent career. 4. Underrated defender because he doesn't look the part. I will forever defend his elite defender status on this board til end of time, probably. 5. Will never shake off the ignorant "taller player should rebound better" views. Seriously? Who were the best rebounders in NBA history? Rodman at 6-8? Barkley at 6-4? Who's a better rebounder? Patrick Patterson or Patrick Beverley? I think Yao's public opinion would be higher if there weren't so many fans who didn't hold this idiotic belief that 7 footers must be monster rebounders. 6. Love the big man. Great player, great teammate, great role model, great person, wished he could've stayed healthy.
I wasn't criticizing Yao, rather I was just stating it as it was. I have no agenda. I like Yao. You are correct that fronting defenses give Howard trouble however this thread is about Yao. Yao was / is far superior to Dwight in all things when it comes to offense and Dwight is far superior to Yao when it comes to defense. As for now Yao is #3 in the Rockets history of great centers behind Hakeem and Moses Malone. Dwight will have to really prove a lot to move ahead of Yao.
5. It's ok to admit flaws about your favorite player. Taller guys should rebound more. Most of the best rebounders in league history were taller guys. Rodman and Barkley were exceptions to the rule. The fact Beverly rebounds better than Patterson is both a knock on Patterson and credit to Beverly. 6. Agreed
Most of the best rebounders are between 6-8 and 6-10 types. And I'm talking about real height, not "Hakeem listed at 7-0" height.
"Tallness" is relative to who you played against. Most of the 6'8"-6'10" throughout history (except the 60's) were PF's, so they were guarding other players right around their same height. Height is supposed to be an advantage rebounding and shot blocking, although it's not the be-all-end-all. Yao wasn't a bad rebounder, he was decent and should've been better. It's no coincendence most of his monster career rebounding games were against guys sub-7'.
Yao was fantastic... if you could get the ball to him in the post. Most teams would front him in the post, and he wasn't athletic enough to beat that strategy. I wish he had played with a better PG or even a point forward who could've found creative ways to get him the ball. JVG not known for offensive creativity...
He was averaging just under 27 PPG, 10.2 RPG, 2.3 BPG on 54% shooting and his always amazing 85% free throw percentage before the injury just before Christmas in 06-07. He was what, only 26 then? He probably should have been averaging an extra 6-7 free throws per game too. We all know he was manhandled, punched, elbowed in the kidney, held, pushed, and everything else. Remember the Portland series when Oden and Pryzbilla were literally hugging him? Shaq was misrefeffed too, but they called more foul shots for him because he'd miss half of them. I think he could've averaged 35 PPG if were refereed correctly and we had a point guard who could actually pass into the front.
In 08-09 when he played 77 games at 33 MPG he didn't he average 6 free throws per game. Really? Moot now I guess. I'm happy I am a Rockets fan who can fully appreciate how good he really was as a a basketball player, not to mention person. The average fan can't fully understand IMO.
