Kobe impressed with Yao....

http://www.shreveporttimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050227/SPORTS/502270346/1001/SPORTS
(towards bottom of page....)

Kobe impressed with Yao

Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant is impressed with how Houston Rockets center Yao Ming has progressed since last season.

"He's gotten more physical; he's learning how to use his body a lot more," Bryant said. "And he's stronger with the basketball. That has to be a direct influence from (Rockets assistant coach and former New York Knicks center) Patrick Ewing. And his presence on the post is getting tough."

At the All-Star Game, Bryant was asked if he would like to have Yao as a teammate in Los Angeles.

Bryant paused and smiled. "I don't think T-Mac would like that too much."

 

http://www.sltrib.com/sports/ci_2588149

Another article--- From the Salt Lake Tribune

Yao, Rockets stand tall as playoffs loom


Center of attention: The 7-6 All-Star is a big reason Houston is making some noise in the West

By Steve Luhm
The Salt Lake Tribune

At 7-foot-6, Houston center Yao Ming is the tallest player to participate in an NBA All-Star Game.
Give him time - say, four months - and he might be the tallest player to win an NBA championship.
Behind the play of Yao, the Rockets have overcome a slow start and are rolling toward the Western Conference playoffs.
Heading into today's game against the Jazz, Houston sits sixth in the West - just behind Dallas and Sacramento and just ahead of Memphis and the L.A. Lakers.
Although the Rockets have dropped two straight since the All-Star Game - to Seattle and San Antonio - an eight-game winning streak prior to the break had Houston dreaming of a title.
This year.
"This team has a chance to be great, no doubt about it," Bob Sura said. "If we do what we're supposed to, we always have a chance to win - and not a lot of teams can say that."
The big reason?
The big guy.
With all due respect to fellow All-Star Tracy McGrady, Yao possesses the kind of unique skills that can carry teams to championships.
Even though he's only 24 years old, Yao has emerged as one of the NBA's best players and greatest international ambassadors.
"He's already the second-best center in the world and he's just getting started," Hall of Famer Bill Walton told NBA.com. "His chance to steer the course of history is what legends and legacies are made of. It's all there for Yao Ming."
In tandem with McGrady, who was acquired by Houston in the offseason for baggage-toting point guard Steve Francis, Yao has an unlimited future.
"They can help each other," said New Jersey All-Star Vince Carter, who is McGrady's former teammate in Toronto. "It's like a marriage. You look out for each other. You protect each other. In good times and bad times, you're there for each other. If they do that, their play will rise to another level."
Yao agrees.
"We will work together a long time," he recently told the Houston Chronicle. "We are both still very young. That's two good people for the team. And I think that's good. A team
needs a good base. After we got Tracy, I thought that was a good trade. After more than 50 games, I know it was a good trade. An inside player and an outside player - that's the way to build a team."
Houston management is certainly trying.
Since last season, only Yao and journeyman forward Scott Padgett remain on the roster. When newcomers Moochie Norris, Vin Baker and Mike James report following trades Thursday, it means Houston will have had 23 different players on in its roster this season.
That's one reason the Rockets started 6-11, including losses to teams like Atlanta, New York, Toronto and Utah.
"I expected there to be some kind of adjustment," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "[But] now it has kicked in. I always thought it would happen. I just didn't know when."
McGrady said the Rockets are confident. "We have a great nucleus here - a great coaching staff, great veterans," he said. "You got all the ingredients you need to win a championship. You got the big
man. You got the wings. You got the shooters. If we keep building, yeah, we can be a championship team."
During the eight-game winning streak, McGrady averaged 24.5 points. Yao averaged 20.5 points on 65-percent shooting.
"We're a better team, there's no doubt about that," coach Jeff Van Gundy said. "But the fight for us is to keep seeing improvement and not drop off. We have, without a doubt, the most difficult schedule left in the NBA. So every game, we're on the brink. And it can change so quickly in this league."
The Rockets know all about it.
During the slow start, Yao became a target for critics, who called him soft and passive and question his ability to improve.
Wrong, according to Miami coach Stan Van Gundy, who is Jeff's brother.
"Other than Shaq, he's as good as any center in the league," he said. "Big guys - other than the absolute rarities like Shaquille - take longer than perimeter guys to develop. So you have a very young guy who is out there getting 18 or 19 points and eight or nine rebounds a game. Not too many teams in the league wouldn't take that."
Yao shrugged off the criticism.
"All I can do is try to prove myself," he said. "I've learned that my method of playing basketball is a little different than how it's done here. [But] it's still basketball and the objectives are the same."
Slowly, the new-look Rockets began to mesh.
Yao and McGrady started to learn more about each other's game, point Bob Sura came off the injured list and veterans David Wesley and Barry were acquired in trades.
With the backcourt solidified, the Rockets took off.
"We got off to a slow start because we really didn't know what style we were going to play and we weren't a very good defensive team," McGrady said. "But when we made those trades to acquire Barry and Wesley, it really added leadership, mental toughness, great perimeter shooting and defense. It also added some tempo to our offense."
Enough, perhaps, to start a Ming Dynasty in the NBA.


Yao-zah
Pts FG% Rebs Blocks
2002-03 13.5 .489 8.2 1.74
2003-04 17.5 .522 9.0 1.90
2004-05 18.7 .551 8.4 1.87
Noteworthy: Yao ranks third in the league in field-goal percentage behind Shaquille O'Neal (.599) and Amare Stoudamire (.570). He is 10th in blocked shots. He scored a career-high 40 points against Toronto on Dec. 20.