it just seems like the closer it gets to the day he plays shaq, the worst he plays. he still makes a difference but i wanna see the ROTM yao. the media has put tooo much hype in this game and it seems to have gone to yao's head. i just hope that yao's been playin this bad just to throw everybody off and surprise everyone in the world by going off on shaq. c'mon do you really think he missed all those point blank shots? he missed them on purpose, all part of yao's plan. haha ok maybe not but its good to think on the positive side!
Oh yeah, did you watch the Kings/Mavs game tonight? Clearly, the Mavs lost ON PURPOSE. That's a way to fire themselves up and get ready to surprise everyone in the playoffs. That's all part of their plan. Oh, the Nuggets are sucking on purpose too, they plan to surprise everyone next year. So do the Cavs. BTW, Memphis is so fired up to surprise people in year 3003. Get ready for that!
Is tonight actually a big loss with Yao's performance? What's the chance of Yao having two horrible games right after another? Hasn't Yao made everyone jump on the band-wagon, even those who doubted him from the start, especially the first game of the season. "The lowest-scoring performance from every number one draft pick ever... this guy is a joke"... top Rookie of the Year candidate? He's the real deal.
I was actually really impressed with Yao's performance tonight. I liked his shot selection and post up presence on offense then then his previous ones where he was stuck on the high post doing fadeaways. While he didn't make those 5-8 foot shots, it's definitely showing that his weight training is really paying off. He's already establishing himself that good a position so soon. Also he's not getting the ball knocked out of his hands as often as in previous games. I think tonight was just an off night considering how close he was to the basket. I think if he can muscle his way in to get those 5 to 8 foot shots against Shaq, he'll make them unlike tonight, and he will as previous posters have said have a high scoring night. And while Amare statistically beat out Yao tonight, Yao got the job done where stats can't tell the story. He got Amare to turn the ball over on the Suns last play of the game which kept it from being a closer more drawn out game. He changed a lot of the Suns shots in the paint, and for a good stint in the 2nd through some of the 4th kept Amare from keeping pace of all the rebounds he got in the 1st quarter. Anyone else notice that when Cato got in the game and took charge of the rebounds category that it kept Amare quiet for the rest of the game til late in the 4th? And that when Yao checked in afterwards, he followed Cato's example and made sure to grab those boards. Anyhow, while his shooting performance wasn't great tonight, his shot selection was much more favorable then his previous games. Amare may of won statistically, but Yao got himself a win in the end and made crucial defensive stops to keep the Suns from making a stronger run.
If he's done that much weight training in the last couple of months, it might be affecting his shooting.
exactamundo, you stat lovers and highlight freaks need to go look at team defense. Yao is the ultimate intimidator. Posey, Griff, and Cato are key but the intimidation factor Yao brings is the source of our defensive success. Fellas We're 22-15, if Yao still cant get your respect, go sit on a duck.
There's no conspiracy or mystery here. Teams are adjusting their defenses to Yao, and Yao, as well as the rest of our team, is figuring out how to adjust to the adjustments. Give it some time. The potential is sky high. Once Francis and Mobley learn to deal with a Yao who can adjust to different defenses, we will show drastic improvement. It's not like obley and Francis aren't trying. They've just never seen this type of post defense before. In Hakeem's last season, he never go heavy duty double teams or just triple teams. There was double coverage during the latter half of the season, but it's not what Yao's seeing. Especially with zones, it's a whole new thing for everyone.
