Don't know if it was picked up here earlier, but the headline is somewhat misleading. Interesting piece and pretty insightful about the woes of the NBA today. Nothing against Yao as the headline suggests. --- From the AFP... Opinion piece in NY Times BASKETBALL 'Yao and imports are cheap labour' NEW YORK - Chinese star Yao Ming and the increasing number of foreign players in the NBA are all cheap labour. Retired National Basketball Association star Oscar Robertson accused the league of using Yao and the foreign legion to increase the global appeal of the game, rather than grooming players with fundamental skills. Robertson, 65, wrote in an opinion piece in the New York Times: 'Just as America imports cheap labour from other countries to do the jobs Americans don't want to do, the NBA turns increasingly to foreign players who do have fundamental skills and an all-around approach to the game that fewer and fewer American players - even though they may be superior athletes - can be troubled to learn. 'The NBA has made a conscious decision to function as a marketing and entertainment organisation and seems much more concerned with selling sneakers, jerseys, hats and highlight videos than with the product it puts on the floor. 'The league wants to extend its footprint worldwide, which is good, but only to the extent of creating individual heroes who can drive sales of licensed products in their countries - a short-sighted approach.' Robertson sees the growing number of international players in the NBA as a sign that the league lacks American youth with fundamental skills. A stellar guard in the 1960s and 1970s, he said the basic basketball lessons have been replaced by marketing-minded managers, with no schooling for raw talent. 'Many of my colleagues and I ... are saddened by what the game has become,' he wrote. 'Professional basketball has been trivialised and dumbed down to the level of a highlight reel. Marketing and entertainment rule the day rather than putting the best product on the floor.' Robertson, nicknamed 'The Big O', was a three-time American collegiate Player of the Year who led the 1960 American Olympic gold-medal team. He was also the 1964 NBA Most Valuable Player with Cincinnati and won the 1971 title with Milwaukee. In the 1961/62 season, he averaged a triple-double - recording double digits in points, rebounds and assists per game. Not even Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan nor Kobe Bryant came close to that feat. 'Defences can't guard anyone properly and offences can't score,' he wrote. 'I pity coaches at any level who believe in and want to teach fundamentals when youngsters see players on TV with no fundamentals being paid huge sums of money.' He lamented the fact that votes for last Sunday's NBA All-Star Game were in the hands of global fans and Internet access, instead of being decided by players. 'We have the spectacle of Yao, already an international marketing icon if not quite yet a fully-developed basketball player, starting at centre for the West instead of Shaquille O'Neal,' he continued. 'I think voting should be returned to the players - even if we don't have marketing degrees.' He cringes when he sees players like LeBron James turned into dunking highlight reels rather than became all-round skilful players. 'Team play is no longer considered sexy,' he wrote. 'Individual showmanship is. But one player, no matter how gifted, does not build a championship franchise.' All-round skills and defence took a back seat to slam dunks at the All-Star Game, building an American mentality that will likely never result in the NBA adopting less of a one-on-one orientation. 'Even if basketball people were allowed once again to influence the strategic direction of the NBA, it would take them years to reverse the damage,' he wrote. -- AFP
I lost all my respect to him. Fans voted Yao as starter. not David Stern, not basket ball union, not ACLU. How come he didn't bring up the issue....why there is so few white players in the league. NBA should do something about that. Doh
First he b****es about American players not bothering to learn the fundamentals, then he b****es that YM is starting over SO in the all star game. Those complaints contradict each other, because it's YM who works on fundamentals, not SO. Just compare FT percentage..... Raven
So he wants to turn over the all-star decision-making to the players, the same players he disparages in the same article for choosing to be showboats over "team-players"? STuart
back when I was a player we had skills and it was all about the team. I remember you could take your whole family to the game for a nickel, and you'd have change left over to buy a pizza.
How Ironic he state basketball player should have fundamentals and skill instead of Individual showmanship, but he claims that Shaq should start in ASG. LOL.
I don't like the fact that he raved about international players being fundamental and yet what is wrong with Yao starting over O'neal??? Surely Yao have proved for 1 game is as good if not better than O'neal. Why would he still questioned that??? Only a few question Yao starting after what he did to O'neal and what he've shown at the All-Star. About the voting, he sounds like NBA opening up voting international is the result of Shaq losing the spot. I mean didn't Shaq lose on paper ballots and win on internet voting?? It's not like Yao got the spot because all the Chinese vote for him. He got the spot simply because he's just A POPULAR player than Shaq. Nobody really likes Shaq because of his ego and selfishness and self-center demeanor, the guy has a bad attitude. And All-Star is all about fans and have ALWAYS been about the fans. If he really want to complain about fans voting, he ought to look at Vince Carter. Oh wait, maybe he's only picking on Yao cuz he's international? Man I bet Carter still get voted in even if he has only 1 leg. Man, if you want to pick on someone that don't deserve to be starter, you ought to look at Carter!!! He said All-Star voting should be handed to the players. But that's the same thing as fans voting. How honest are the players when it comes to voting?? If a particular player have a grudge and animosity toward certain players, do you think he will vote for that player?? Heck no! It's the same thing with fans, do you think fans vote for players they don't like and only their favorites?? Hell ya!! My point is players voting isn't going to solve the problem. If they really want to do away with fans voting and forget the fans, then they ought to let coaches vote for all of the players including starters.
He's part of the "establishment" of black players in the NBA. This group includes players like Barkley, Magic, and probably Jordan for all we know. They will never accept an international non-black player in this league and will do whatever or say whatever they can to detract from their success. It's okay though, because most smart fans can spot this racist behavior a mile away. So really, it's not the issue of fundamentals that he has an issue with, it's the influx of international players. It's really quite obvious.
he makes good points...but the title is just terrible come on big o...you could have thought a bit longer about your title unless you just wanted to get controversy stirred up so people would read your column
If you think fundamentals is the most important thing, why not b****ing about SF starts instead of Cassel? I think this old guy just have problems with international players having success instead of African-American players.
shaq is a great team player. sorry if you don't believe it but he is one of the better passing big men around.
for the millionth, trillionth, zillionth, kazillionth time, Yao Ming won the American votes as well. this guy is just a bitter old man, the game is fine. "defenses can't guard , and offenses can't score" whats up with that ? maybe, you think, the offenses can't score because the defenses with zones are better than they have ever been. what is this dude talking about, back in his day them guys played no defense. i'm tired of people b****ing about life and sports and this and that, things are the way they are, live it - love it, or go to tibet to be a monk or whatever, but just shut the hell up.
The Media is STILL b****ing and complaining about All-Star selections? LOL. These people act like it's a matter of life and death like their whole career hinges on whether they get to START or not. Heaven forbid if Yao won the ASG MVP all hell would break loose. And it's not even like these old timers are even still in the league. Is it some sort of "elite" thing where they have to approve and disapprove of certain All star selections? ROFL get a grip.
I dont like the title of Cheap Labour though.. he makes international players sound second rate. The article itself is something people have been discussing for sometime now.. lack of fundamentals for todays young players and alot of people have stated this is due to the Jordan Era (one on one basketball).. Give Jordan the ball and everyone get out of the way! J
If Yao were an international player from Africa instead of China, would Mr. Robertson feel the same way? At least Calvin Murphy is being constructive and teaching fundamentals at his camps, rather than merely griping about it to the media.
Texas great point! defensive fundamentals? please give me a break. When he had scores in the 100's consistently! I think alot of "Old School" players need to get a grip.. the game has changed but so have the atheletes in it! How many "old school" superstars would still be stars if they were playing today? J
the 'old school' players are just bitter that they never got to even sniff a million dollars--in their career. Those who don't adapt are doomed to extinction. Just go away old man and bring your racist-poor-excuse-for-an-objective-article with you.
Just like everything in America, the MARKET takes care of everything. That's what this whole capitalistic government was based on. Everyone does what they can to get the most for themselves. If Lebron can make 100 million dollars when he's 18 just for highlight reel dunks, then so be it. That's what the fans want and that's what they pay for. If the fans want to see Yao ming start an all-star game, that's what the FANS want. I've seen David Stern go on tv and defend the all-star game saying thats what the fans want. Maybe these whiners need to pay more attention to the RULES that dictate what the all-star game is and how the players get selected. Besides his argument is full of holes if he thinks Shaq has more fundamentals than Yao ming--that's not even counting the popularity disparity of the two players.
