Is fronting Yao as effective as it looked yesterday?

I dont think the lob pass is a good idea.. I agree that it can be easily converted to a basket, but there's a high percentage risk of the ball getting stolen by a quick guard coming off to help.. I think a good idea would be faking a lob then passing to the guy who gets open on the outside when the defender comes down to help. ..

 

i hate how when they finally get the ball over the top to yao....yao turns around into the defender behind him and gets called for the offensive fall. thats a bull**** call! he cant even turn around when he gets it. tahts why its the best way to stop yao....

 

Happens all the damn time and it's frustrating.

 

I watched all 8 games on TV, Rockets did that many times in the first 8 games and it's been very efficient so far.

In the Spurs game, I remember Rockets did that once and the helping player (Manu) had to foul Yao to stop him.

 

I don't know...

 

The best way to defend yao is to make sure he doesn't get the ball to begin with. Once he gets it in the post its pretty much game over so yeah fronting him is a good idea because our post passers cant throw a good enough lob and yao isn't good enough at catching those yet. A classic example of this was the New Orleans game when West was guarding Yao. And yeah I hate how the weak side defenders come over and draw the charge. I really think we can adjust to it like Hakeem did and it forced defenses to stop fronting him because he would make an easier shot.

 

this is the other thread I was gonna start. Fronting yao with a quicker player reared its ugly head yesterday. hopefully it won't be as effective as the season goes along. but that has been historically the best way to defend yao. another reason I didn't get too excited about yao's game against miami is miami still plays behind him and he will kill you like that. he's pretty much become unguardable one on one but if you make it difficult for him to catch the ball and then attack him with a double team once he catches it still gives him somewhat of a problem.

 

The game was lost because when we were by 15, TMac started rushing the offense and going for quick and bad shots.
If could have iced the game at that point, and started taking all 24 seconds off the clock, we could have sustained the SA surge.

We just played stupid when we had the lead. We were rushing the plays as if we were trailing by a big margin.

 

the rockets should just take the mid range j if they could and yao could clean it up

 

if they can't get it too yao, they'll need either 1) mcgrady to step up and do what he's suppose to do or 2) have the other players penetrate, draw defenders, then dish to yao or an outside shooter.

 

mid-ranged J is low %, and we all know how bad we are at shooting

 

1. mid range j have a shorter rebound, so even at a low % yao might get a 2nd chance point.

2. they could even try the airball/assist battier did back in miami i think

 

I thought Yao's poor performance had more to do with him having an off night more than anything. He missed a lot of shots that he normally makes, and never quite got into an offensive groove as usual. The aggressive fronting (especially when the Spurs decided to pack the paint) certainly made matters worse for him in the 4th, but he did have a chance to establish himself long before that -- neither Oberto nor Elson were particularly effective at stopping him anyway. His shots just weren't falling.

 

It is effective when he is shooting only 33% but when he shoots well, it is not all that effective.



Come on, it was not the Spurs that caused the meltdown on Yao yesterday, it was that JVG failed to give him proper rest and by the team the Spurs caught up, he was running on fumes.

DD

 

Yeah I noticed that his usual substitution pattern had changed against the Spurs. He was clearly tired in the fourth.

 

well in the games before chuck got hurt, he would help by setting a screen on Yao's man to give him a second to get across. When the ball was swung from one side to the other chuck would go from the weak side set a screen on Yao's man and then as the ball was moved around, Yao would again be on the strong side or the defense would follow Yao and Chuck would be wide open for a bunny.

Without that post player down there (because Juwan and Synder stay out of the post)... it was Yao, his defender and the weak side defender all cramming in the middle. Makes a big difference when you swing it around because Yao has to do all the work himself to get free.

 

i think this is the only coach stubborn enough to try the same **** every game throughout the game. they don't run picks for rafer or anyone to get a clean 10-15 foot jumper. there is just no variety. it makes it harder for a 3rd scorer to get in a groove and initiate. this offense is as stagnant as it ever was. yao is just more aggressive. but when he has a bad night, it becomes apparent that there is no other offense(Mac's flurrys withstanding).