Eight well-known sportswriters in Taiwan, most of them interviewed Ming or watched Ming's plays before, held a big discussion recently. The title is: Rockets: Ming or not Ming. person #1: Ming =Bill Russell He has the "character of champion", just like Michael Jordan. Only a few players in NBA have such characters. Red tape? That's because someone wants to slip Ming's stock. You can guess who they are. person #2 Ming will be a employable starting center, not a all-star player. Rockets: good offer: pick Ming and trade him. no good offer: pick Jay Williams and trade him. or keep JW and let him play with Francis as starters. person #3: High on Ming: 1. he is smart 2. good English 3. good passing 4. good defend Worry about the offend of Ming. person #4: Ming=bigger Booth or Ilgauskas. Don't think Rockets will pick him. Hope he can be picked before #10. person #5: Ming=employable center or bench. person #6: The weakness of Rockets is lack of big guys. Ming is the one. rockets: take pains and design a proper plan for Ming. teammates: accept Ming. If no Ming, only Francis and Mobley, no way for them to go to the playoff. person #7: Ming=a solid center between Bradley and Rik Smits. I will not use #1 pick on Ming. person #8 Ming will be the biggest surprise of NBA draft this year. He will impact the team both on offend and defend.
windandsea - thanks for passing along the info that you do. We simply wouldn't get it otherwise.... it's very much appreciated.
Looks like opinion concerning Ming is just as divided in Asia as it is here in the States! That's a bit surprising to me!
So the sportwriters in Taiwan are just as puzzeled as to what type of player Ming will be in the NBA as the US writers are. This is scary. Has there every been a #1 pick with this many differing opinions on him??
Hey <b>windandsea</b>, who are those "persons" making those comments? Which have more credibility in your opinion?
I found this from a BBS and had no idea about who they are. I am from the main land of China. I noticed that the person #4, who gave the worst credit to Ming, said he never watched Ming's plays. Why did they want to discuss Rockets and Ming? I was suprised too when I found this debate. I thought only people from main land of China and the fans of Rockets care about Ming. Now I know I am wrong. Because Ming is a Chinese, a asian, he has to hold the hope of whole asia. It's too heavy for a 21 years old young men. At least, all the fans of asia know Rockets now.
Taiwan organized a team to participate CBA. Its name is" Taipei China Sina team". I think that is one of the reason many reporters of Taiwan know many things about Ming or basketball.
Windandsea drops knowledge. See , after the speculation of us getting Ming, we gain fans who might not otherwise be fans of the team. Winandsea has dropped us the Ming 411 since day 1 he was on bbs. Thanx
One more benefit to drafting Ming is that the Hangout will have more diverse people to chat with about foreign affairs. Welcome WindandSea, and keep us posted. Go ROCKETS !!! Go MING !!! DaDakota
Uh oh.... Thanks, windandsea. I'm not surprised Taiwan nationals (is that an appropriate term?) are into Yao, and I would anticipate that people in other Asian countries would be interested a little, but I'd be surprised if everyone in East Asia, Southeast Asia was as hooked on Yao as in mainland China. Interesting, though.
From a web site on Asian basketball you provided it appears they are The Lions and they were 11-13 this past season. They have the "imports" David Van Dyke & Jason Woodard. Are all of the ChBA games played on the Mainland? Perhaps this was asked before, but have you seen Yao Ming play in person? Or only on TV? Thanks.
hey if we draft Ming maybe yall should think about making Windandsea a part of the "Clutch Crew" for his vaulable contribution to this site and board.
The Sina Lions took the "Taiwan" (or was it Taipei?) out of their name because the Taiwanese politicans complained. They moved to Suzhou (in Jiangsu province, about an hour outside of Shanghai) where they were surprisingly competitive considering the team hadn't played in a real league the previous 2-3 years. And yes, all CBA games are played on the mainland.
Basketball is a fast growing sport in not only China, but Asia. It's mostly the younger population, but with more exposure to the NBA, it could try to rival Europe in 10-15 years.
Windandsea, Since you say you live on the mainland of China, I assume you live under the Communist or Socialist governmental system. Can you comment on how much the central government of China can and will control the professional career of Yao Ming. We hear that he will be required to provide his services first to the Chinese Intenational team(s) which will mean that the Rockets will not be able to have access to him for Summer Camps ( I know not this summer but next year?) and for the critical preseason learning period? Would the CBA or International seasons ever conflict with the regular season or playoffs in the NBA? I know these are complex questions and will be considered in the contract negotiations between the Rockets and the Chinese government, but for me it is the key to whether the Rockets should pick Ming or trade the pick. GP
Gene Peterson - The ChBA plays from approximately December 8th thu April 24th. Other than the 350G buyout figure to the Shanghai Sharks, the only other negotiating point is helping the Sharks and ChBA with clinics, exhibitions, etc. We are taking a valuable asset and they want to be sure that we will - 1) respect Yao Ming and 2) interact with them once Yao is playing in the US. This is reasonable. The Chinese National Team is a different aspect and there is another thread which addresses this in detail. Apparently, the Rockets are seeking an advanced contractual agreement with the National Team defining when the CNT can and can not have access to Yao. Check that thread for more specifics. PS - heech - Thanks.
Windandsea, considering the political tension between China and Taiwan, do you think the opinions of these sportwriters may be skewed by other considerations? It seems to me that, on the one hand, they have a stake in Yao's success based on his ethnicity, while on the other hand, they have a political interest to see China fall on its face. Which would be more important to them? Do you think that perhaps the writers have a higher opinion than they should because he's Chinese ethnically or a lower opinion than they should because he is Chinese politically?
