You may have a point on his strength, but what I have noticed is a change in his quickness on defense. I dont think its physical though, I think its mental. In the beginning he was having trouble with guards driving straight at him and I just thought he had slow feet, he was getting caught under the basket and letting the quick guys go by or making contact where the fouls had to be called on him no matter who initiated contact. The Hornets tried going at him and it worked pretty well , but, they still couldnt foul him out. He seems to be extra smart, he is now reacting to drivers quicker , getting out from under the basket and defending better. He is adjusting to NBA speed and learning his limitations. He really seems to be aware of whats happining on the court. Hes adjusting and learning fast...
As someone who has been through the same system as Yao, I can tell you that Yao probably had more weight training in CBA than he'll ever get with the Rox. Chinese bball clubs usually devote about 1/4 of the daily training in the weight room, but the focus is on the middle & lower body, not much upper body. Clearly, Yao is the product of that training. It's unlikely Rox will be able to do much of the upper body training with Yao during the season, given the busy schedule. That will have to be done in the Summer.
The trainiers are weight training with him during the season (Falsone). He's talked about it. He's toned in his arms now. Just wait until the next couple months. All you will have to do is look at old pictures of him from the start of the season.
