Chron: JVG to Yao - Well-placed elbow would make space against double team

Wrong answer. Sloan's teams' play aggressive (dirty?) right from the tip-off. You don't honestly think Utah is going to not grab, hold, set borderline moving screens and flop because their opponent is playing within the rules?

Over the years, the refs have adjusted to Sloan's style of play. Van Gundy wants Yao to stand his ground by being more aggressive. Eventually the officiating will adjust to that as Yao's (or Houston's) style of play.

 

I like her to be full of my.... oh ... sorry...

Yao and the double team. Experience... That's what it's gonna' take although he's gotta' start working on it now. Right now he either coughs up the ball or throws the ball to an imaginary man.

I did almost a whole analysis of the team in the "I wanna trade Mobley cause I'm a dumbass" thread... if anyone's interested. I was kinda' buzzed...

 

I thought that JVG would inject some East Coast toughness into this Rox team but I was disappointed so far.

IMHO, Yao will never be an elbow-throwing enforcer type. In fact, I don't see anyone on this Rox team taking on that role. Like Sir Charles said recently, the entire league has turned soft. The best we can hope for is that Yao will gradually gain some respect from the refs and get more calls in the future.

For now, let's just get used to hack-a-Yao and pray that Yao doesn't get hurt by one of these goons.

 

Yao is the key to the team. Given the supporting cast. to be any sort of playoff contender Yao needs to become at least very close to an elite center of the Olajuwon, Shaq, Duncan variety. I would say that Yao is at this time merely a borderline all-star candidate. Unless Yao reaches this higher level we won't be able to attract the championship quality role players needed, given the cap restrictions. Steve is not good enough to attract this type of talent.

Hopefully we are just in one of those years when Yao and the Rockets are just muddling along till it all clicks. Sort of like the years before the championship.

It is so hard to know with Yao. So many questions. During the preseason and a few games he looked like a real deal developing superstar. At times he certainly doesn't. Is this merely the result of continual double teams? The lack of rebounding. The inexperience. The tiredness factor. Can you be a superstar if you need sixteen minutes of rest per game? Is this a permanent condition? Just the result of overwork? Can his height, court vision and shooting touch compensate for his lack of quickness and jumping ability. His ability to build more usable strength. Is he warrior enough for the NBA? Is Yao plateauing in terms of his desire to improve?

With Yao I would say that it will be the fourth year that will start to give us the anwer to these questions. Until then we will have to be fans with more limited expectations, looking for the slight improvements in the standings or small gains from Moochie for Witherspoon type trades.

 

Yao nailed maggette with in elbow right to the face and dropped him like a sack of potatoes...

maggette punk

 

Hmmm, can anybody enlighten me how this person relates to the thread?

 

I think that Yao might have listened to what JVG said. In tonights game against Utah he was trapped in a double team (if my memory is right) and he threw his upper body hard against i think it was Deshawn Stevenson to gain space for a lay up. It was an offensive foul but it was a rare aggressive move from Yao that I'd like to see more of.

 

If that was the fourth quarter, I thought it was a flop by Collins.

 

Gotta appreciate Ewing's grasp of elementary math.

 

Um, he meant the TO's, not the offensive fouls.

 

Offensive fouls are counted as TO's.

Ewing simply stated the obvious:
3 lost balls from passes + 2 off. fouls = 5 TOs.