Let me make this clear... There is one guy on this team who, night after night, presents the biggest mismatch on the floor (except for the nights we play the Lakers). This same guy shoots over 50% from the floor. This same guy also passes the ball extremely well. That guy is Yao Ming. And, until the Rockets as a team collectively realize that their playoff (and championship) hopes rest squarely on HIS (not Steve's, not Cuttino's, not Mo Taylor's) shoulders, they will be flailing around in the middle of the Western conference just as they are now. Look at the Rockets record when Yao scores more than 20 points in a game. It is ridiculous. They've only lost a few of those games. Why? It's simple. Because when Yao gets the ball early in the offense and is able to establish himself, the whole team benefits. If Steve Francis scores big in a game, however, it is more of the same from the previous years. We'll beat teams from time to time, but Francis is like a black hole with the basketball. If he's scoring, it is because other guys are not involved. You don't have to double team Francis. And, he takes up so much floor space dribbling around it makes it almost impossible for the other players to get good position. The spacing gets all screwed up. So, it would seem natural that the sooner the Rockets start adjusting their game to focus on Yao as option #1, the sooner they will start rising to the top. Yes, I know, Yao currently has problems sometimes getting position. I don't care. Give him the ball whereever he gets open. The guy has unbelievable range and is the best shooter on the team. Yes, I said that. Yao is the BEST SHOOTER ON THE TEAM. So, give him the ball at the top of the key, for all I care. Give him the ball at the three point line. Just give him the ball. When he touches the ball, 7 times out of 10 something good happens. OK, I'm done. What do you think?
I completely agree with you Axeman. He has his problems and off nights, but he is only 22 yrs old who is still learning the NBA game and culture. All that said he can be a dominating player and game changer. Take the ball out of Steve and Cuttino's hands, give it to Yao and let him be the point center on the floor. Rather it be from the top of the key or the post, he can kill opposing defenses with his shot and passing skills.
i agree, axeman. and severe, it's not often that yao has an off night like the horrible 2-11 performance a couple of nights ago. very rare. last night was refreshing to see that he refused to let rasha front him or learned to manuver around the front. he's getting better at it. next thing to learn... how to get an offensive rebound... or to rebound better anyway. no offensive rebounds last night. he's the man on the team. give the guy the got damn ball.
The TV announcers (Marv, Doug) mentioned a couple of times that the Rockets are a poor passing team, they also showed a couple of clips (along with comment) that how hard Yao fought for position and his teammates were not able to get him the ball. The only positive that the announcers were able to give the Rockets were Yao's play. I am happy to see that Yao came out very aggressive against the Spurs last night. He had no problem scoring against Nes, Duncan. Several times he even muscled his way toward the basket, and also found a way to beat the fronting by Nes. Very refreshing to see that.
Saying to give Yao the ball is an extremely easy thing to do, but to be honest I don't think Yao can handle more than 15 shots a game. In the 2nd half he was really laboring to get up and down the floor. If he had the conditioning to get position every time down the court I would hope he would get it, but right now he does not. Even the TNT announcers commented on how tired he looked out there getting up and down the court. When he is that tired do you really expect him to be able to fight for good position down low? Not getting Yao the ball was not the problem last night ... In fact the Rockets really made their run with Yao on the bench, and the same in the 4th quarter agains Atlanta. When Yao is NBA-Conditioned (well more like rested) then Yao will be able to be a force that can get the ball every time down .. Right now he is not able to do that.
And you had to love that LONG 20+ footer he nailed. Watching Yao Ming in shootarounds, it's clear that he can shoot from anywhere on the court, but lately he's been off from outside. If he can hit that shot consistently, the Rockets should give him more opportunities. He can post up, but when that's not working, he's a fantastic shooter, and to underutilize that would be a waste.
RocketmanJosh: Irrelevant. Know why? Because he wasn't given the ball several times when he fought hard - and succeeded- to get position. He did the hard part. The part that would make him tired. Giving him another scoring opportunity there would not have significantly increased his workload. It would have just helped the team. Yao is easily the team's best individual scorer. He doesn't handle double teams well - but when the double team isn't coming, he needs to get the ball whenever he wants it.
anyone else notice how JVG going went with yao after the timeout near the end of the game to sink a shot; this showed that jvg knows our shoooters suck.and yes pass the damn ball to yao and trade steve.
I wish they would have let Yao take that last 3, it would have had a better chance of going in that Steve Fancy. DD
Agreed. Yao will have a good game most of the time...his stats show that. But we need someone to pick up the slack when Yaos off, trading Steve for at least a better scorer is a must...getting a steady point with decent scoring would help us the most.
Did you guys hear the TNT announcers ripping the rockets because of their bad passing and poor shots? im embarassed for them. =(
Agreed. At the beginning of the season,JVG pointed out that 'inside-out' is the tactic of Rox. But it seems like the game plan has changed dramatically after several games. I'm confused if the style Rox play currently is the original idea of JVGs' or not. In fact, Yao's just the heart and soul nominally judging from his shot attempts(3rd in Rox).Even sometimes Rox seems to only use Yao as a decoy.(someone attract opponent's D only) Houston Rockets should have been cognizant that when Houston gives Yao more touches where he is most effective, they come out aggressive on both ends of the court. Although Yao still needs to improve skills and gains more NBA experience, he has already had the ability to deal with the ball by passing out duly or choose to attack by himself intelligently. Well, if you really want your center to dominant, you should give him opportunity to gain and improve from the 'actual combat', but not ignore or bench him as noon as he miss several shoots. Sad to tell of the fact I saw...
The Rox simply have too many gunners that aren't willing to pass up a good shot for a great shot, as I believe Collins said last night. MoT, Cat, Francis...these guys these guys just don't realize the correlation between getting Yao the ball and winning games. Even when teams are fronting, there are opportunities during sets when Yao can receive and we still hesitate. IMO, we should keep Mo for when Yao sits, but we've got to get rid of Cat AND francis and replace them with guys who can properly balance their own scoring opportunities with getting Yao the ball. Bibby and Ray Allen would be ideal, guys who can fill it up when Yao is doubled and also have the ability to create (under control) when things bog down. Well, I can dream at least.
who cares if yao has a bad shooting night, everyone has off nights... the fact of the matter is Yao is our best shooter, give him the ball and give it to him properly
