At first glance, Yao doesn't seem to be a monster presence on the defensive end, with 1.6 blocks and 0.2 steals per game. But anyone who's watched the last dozen games has seen how teams are often reluctant to go inside against him, and when they do it often requires a drastic change of shot for any chance at success. Here are some stats that show what an impact the big guy is having on defense. These are the numbers of the starting centers in every game since Yao's break-out game against the Mavs: DAL - BRADLEY PTS R PF season avg 8.7 7.7 3.8 against Yao 0 2 5 WAS - HAYWOOD PTS R PF season avg 5.6 5.6 3.8 against Yao 2 8 5 LAC - OLOWOKANDI PTS R PF season avg 14.1 9.3 2.8 against Yao 10 4 4 POR - DAVIS PTS R PF season avg 7.2 6.6 2.5 against Yao 10 3 3 GS - DAMPIER PTS R PF season avg 10.2 8.4 3.5 against Yao 6 3 4 SEA - DROBNJAK PTS R PF season avg 9.3 4.4 2.4 against Yao 8 4 5 SAC - DIVAC PTS R PF season avg 8.7 7.7 2.8 against Yao 11 3 3 SAN - ROBINSON PTS R PF season avg 8.3 9.8 2.1 against Yao 7 6 3 NO - MAGLOIRE PTS R PF season avg 9.5 8.5 3.4 against Yao 16 17 5 PHI - MACCULLOCH PTS R PF season avg 9.4 5.6 3.2 against Yao 7 2 5 SAC - DIVAC PTS R PF season avg 8.7 7.7 2.8 against Yao 6 6 3 Held opponent under scoring average: 8 of 11 games Held opponent under rebound average: 9 of 11 games Opponent exceeded personal foul average: 11 of 11 games Sure, some of these guys had minutes against Cato, but the bottom line is that most centers play worse against Yao than they do against the rest of the league, and he's more likely to get them into foul trouble as well. And just imagine what he'll do once he really gets the hang of being aggressive without fouling.
That is amazing. New Orleans Ma. was the only one to actually get to him. Those numbers really make you do a double-take as to Yao's presence inside. Anyone else as excited about our Rockets as I!!!
What I find amazing is that he is doing it without getting into foul trouble. I always thought he would be a great defensive presence for the Rockets but I thought that initially his effectiveness would be limited by foul trouble. I am glad I was wrong!!
