i cringe whenever i see him taking a charge and that 7'6" frame hit the floor. pretty pathetic when taking a charge is your best defense because the refs call the foul on yao whenever the guards run full speed into yao just standing there. sure raises the risk of injury.
First post says it all.(and BUllard touched on it during the game) When the best defense is taking the charge because any contact that isnt block/charge always goes to the offensive guy its a sad state. Why play defense if you will be called with a foul, especially when they jump into you?
Sadly, this is what the NBA has come to. The rules are so biased in favor of players who drive to the basket that trying to draw the charge is actually a good play. Currently, the league leader in blocks is Josh Smith, who is not a clog the middle player but instead an athletic forward. Big, but slow, centers no longer can get blocks the way they used to. Mark Eaton (remember him?), is probably the closest analogy to Yao -- a massive, but relatively slow guy, though Yao is actually faster. Eaton once averaged 5.6 blocks in a season. This year the league leader has only 3.7.
If refs insist on giving him ticky-tack fouls on clean blocks and they buy on those charges then yes, do whatever thing that works well on the court.
Worrell said it best: "A flopping team like the Spurs dont like it very much when they get flopped on."
My first thought is YES great job Yao! Then I think, man he really shouldn't be doing that. Maybe he can save that for the playoffs instead??
Watch the play. When Yao takes a charge, there generally isn't time for him to get to the spot and also contest the shot.
Sung to the tune of "Flipper" They call him flopper, flopper, flopper, Manu Ginobili flops so continuously! They call him flopper, flopper, flopper, Flops faster than lightning For refs who can't see!
I tried singing to the tune of Flipper and it doesn't work. Here are the original Lyrics. They call him Flipper, Flipper, faster than lightning, No-one you see, is smarter than he, And we know Flipper, lives in a world full of wonder, Flying there-under, under the sea! I don't mean to step on your turf but maybe if you changed the Lyrics like this it would work better... They call him Flopper, Flopper, Manu Ginoboli, Refs cannot see, flops continuously, And we know Flopper, is a big time cheater, Flopping every quarter, for a whistle blower! The lyrics could use a little work but it is easier to sing that way. Try it.
I would rather see Yao go staight up and play defense, or put the guy on the floor and mabye next time they won't be so brave to drive it on him.
Yes. He's got a big butt, and as Shane says falling on it one of the keys to taking charges. Plus I don't think taking charges is very dangerous. I've never seen anyone get injured falling on their butt. I've seen people get injured jumping for rebounds, driving the lane, blocking shots, reaching in, and pivoting, but not falling backwards.
