[CBS Sportsline] Weekly Essentials: Rockets don't need same Yao

T-Mac needs to come out looking for his own shot and being aggressive, naturally, he will swing the ball around to the other players or dump it right into Yao if he's blocked off, but he needs to be looking to score if this team is going anywhere.

That said, Yao's a decent second option.

 

"Second Option." Why are you Tracy-Only Fans so intent on making this "Tracy's Team?" "Tracy's Team" in 2004-2005 failed to exit the first round. The same will happen if Yao is not given sufficient touches. If Yao is passive, then his teammates sense this and not pass him the ball, making the problem worse. I can't remember how many times I saw in 2004-2005 when Yao had deep post position, called for the ball, and didn't get it. This stopped happening last year and this year. Why? If a player is passive, his teammates know that, and they don't pass it to him.

There is no need to relegate either Yao or McGrady to "second option," we have seen what happens when this happens to both. When Yao becomes "second option," like in 2004-2005, he becomes passive and just flat doesn't get the ball. When McGrady becomes "second option," like earlier this season, he just shoots a lot of bricks from the perimeter. Kobe and Shaq made it work for 3 rings, love-buying, "Kobe doesn't pass me the ball enough", and "The lazy ****** needs to get into shape" accusations notwithstanding. Yao and McGrady actually seem to genuinely like each other. They can make it work where both players will be dominant.

Sure, right now Yao looks pretty bad, but he is still a step slow from his injury, which he admitted, and he will recover in time, hopefully in time for the playoffs.

What I really don't understand is when YOFs concede that McGrady should be a primary option, why Tracy-only fans don't reciprocate and afford a similar role for Yao. It doesn't have to be one or the other, it can be both. If it's not both, then the team will lose in the first round. If it's both, the team can win the championship.

At least some people here agree with me, which is encouraging.

 

Dude chill out it was a joke.

I was joking about Yao being a decent second option, I had thought the winky face would have implied that but I guess not.

I don't care if it's McGrady's team or Yao's team or Rafer's team all i'm saying is it's better if T-Mac comes out and looks for his shot because T-Mac's rhythm is more important to him than Yao's is to him. That's because Yao plays closer to the hoop and the shots come slightly easier than McGrady's.

T-Mac wants to defer to Yao, but he needs to get his rhythm before he defers to Yao BECAUSE the rest of the team will be dumping right into Yao. When McGrady gets the ball, he should be thinking "score" and he knows that. If he can't score, he's smart enough to make a good pass. And you know he has no problem deferring to Yao when the defense is smothering him. As you can see, the defense can't smother both, but T-Mac needs to be aggressive or in a rhythm for it to work.

They should be taking near the same amount of shots, I don't have a preference for one or the other.

 

...No one is really saying it should be "T-Mac's" team. I think making it an issue about supporting one player over another is ridiculous. To hear some posters tell it, it's like those of us that want a co-option situation with the offense running through T-Mac hate Yao Ming. We are all Rockets fans... it's not about being straight up T-Mac fans, it's about looking at what we think the best solution and best roles for our players is and standing behind that. No one is really saying Yao would be some 2nd option here, it isn't even about that. The point is we will not need the same Yao we saw at the beginning of the year before T-Mac got healthy and picked up his game. We need Yao to play at that same level, we do need that, but we don't necessarily need him serving the same role.

Furthermore, this team is a good bit different from that 04-05 team. Bringing up that tired argument about how letting the Rockets be "Tracy's team" isn't gonna get us out of the first round and won't work is ridiculous. Not that is what most of us supporting, but saying that because Tracy is a poor leader or because Yao Ming couldn't be the go to guy and the center of the offense we lost. The comparison is way too nuanced and is pretty much an irrelevant comparison.

 

Tmac thinking "score"? I beg to differ. I've been a Tmac fan for long, but nobody can argue that his game has evolved. He WAS a two-time scoring champ. He WAS possibly the most freakishly natural finisher in the league.

But the Tmac now is different. Smarter, less athletic maybe, but still capable of scoring. But he doesn't need to. What he needs to think is to "attack", and "make plays". That's when he's at his best now. Because defenses fear his ability to make shots anywhere, that's why they'll react when he attacks, and in turn, that opens things up for Yao, and not just Yao, but the rest of the team via kick-outs and ball-swings.

To be the most effective, this team has to be dynamic. Tmac has to be the main playmaker when he's on the court with Yao, and he has to be the scorer c*m playmaker when Yao is off. Conversely, Yao has to be constantly fed the ball when Tmac is off. As for the team, when Yao is off the court, we definitely need to play at the pace we were playing while Yao was out. And when he's in, we really need to slow it down, and work things through McGrady and Yao.

The play that best sums up our strengths? Tmac-Yao pick and roll. Milk that. Simple.

 

Personally, I loved the way we were playing ball to start the season, and I hope we revert right back to that style of play. Tracy numbers weren't down because of a lack of touches, they were down because he was playing poorly due to back issues. The only difference between then and now is Tracy's visit to the Benny Hinn of back doctors. Screw all this primary/secordary option BS; we have to continue to play to the strengths of both of our superstars; luckily their styles of play are complimentary. With both guys hitting on both cylinders come playoff time we're sure to be a force.

 

no that style of play was PREDICTABLE. sure the record is 14-6 and we had some big wins but that was EARLY in the season when the mavs and spurs were struggling.

i mean do we take a 20-12 record w/o yao saying we're good w/o yao? no we're not.

the offense has to be faster than it was earlier in the season. we can't be predictable. the way we played v. boston was beautiful. now when yao's healthy, he'll make those shots that he took. remember w/ tmac as first option, YAO STILL TOOK 10 SHOTS IN 19 MINS. take that into 35-36, that's 20-21 shots plus free throws.

yao will still get his but u don't know when. as a result, it will DECREASE his turnovers.

look 2 yrs ago v. dallas in the playoffs, yao averaged 2.7 turnovers. b/c we didn't go so slow that we pounded it to him everytime.

 

Our best games early in the season looked just like the Boston game (with the exception of Yao's limited minutes now and Tracy's poor production then). There were moments last night when things were "predictable" and thats OK. If it can't be stopped it doesn't matter how predictable it is.

Sidebar: Our recent games against Dallas have made me hungry for some Yao. I can't wait to watch them squirm when they have no answer for Ming. I can't wait to hear Dampier scream "DADDY NOOOOOO!!!!!" when Yao does him up over and over and over.

Sidebar #2: I think I'm more positive about things than most of you are.

 

Impatience results in failures

 

We do need same Yao in playoffs this year, actually we need both Yao and Tmac play great in the coming series, that is the only way we would win the first or second round and even further.

 

Actually, I don't get it what he meant by Rockets don't need the same Yao.

What is wrong with the Yao that dominates inside and tears the other team apart? Nothing!

Yes, the team may change the way they play the game to better adapt to the all around game of the team. But to say you don't need same dominant Yao? That's just plain stupid.

 

The only two teams in the NBA with two players averaging combined 45-50pts are the Rockets and Denver! and Denver sucks!! so yes we dont have depth like dallas and phx but if our two stars stay healthy and play with full strength with our shooters and defenders playing good game we are in Tmac's words "unstopable"!!!