Fegwu, what is your problem? can you mearly call me an idiot? i am here to spark peoples deepest thoughts, we are gettin down to the issue on why the WORLD loves yao so much, im sure it has to do all with his culture and background, does the world love shaq as much? no because black people in the NBA come a dime a dozen, did people love bill walton so much? no! because he was white, and last time i checked i saw a tall white person everywhere. But yao in chinese and exemplifies what a chinese person is known to be, docile, slow to lash out, when he falls he gets right back up, and most importantly shows respect to all he plays against, I E look at his comments regaurding shaqs comments. SO FEGWU, next time you call me an idiot, think about the true intentions here, ones to make us think
This may be the single WORST post I have ever read on this board. wink2mooch didn't say anything slanderous or stupid in his post. This was totally uncalled for IMO.
being chinese or asian attracts more chinese and asian, nothing more. being 7'6'', and can actually play ball, is what attracts attentions worldwide. only my 2 cents.
Wink2Mooch, you did present a valid point of discussion. Yet all this stuff about Shaq not being popular because he is black and there are a lot of black people and Bill Walton getting no love since there are a lot of tall white people does not follow. Your argument limits people's attitude towards other people based solely upon their race. Was MJ not the most popular player of his time? Did people not want to like Larry Bird because he was a tall white guy, and tall white guys cannot be special since they are everywhere? No way are you going to spark "peoples deepest thoughts" without examining what you are writing. Do not group together races. The fact that Yao Ming is Asian intrigues people since not a lot of Asians have competed in major American sports. Yet the publicity the original Dream Team, consisting of "dime a dozen" black guys and tall white people, received by the world shows how different cultures are intrigued by others, mostly because of people being fans of great basketball players.
let me sum it up like this If there was a 7*6 african-american male with as much skill as yao but his name was Johsiza LeMont would we love his asmuch as we do yao? and what about a 7*6 White guy named Lewis Bruchard.....im saying it all has to do wi th yao being asain. Did people love Shawn Bradley as much when he first came out? NOT AT ALL AND HE IS 7*6. Was it marketing? was it just being lucky he came at this time? it all has to do with being what time he came and the political climate. what we need is a savior of the NBA and yao exemplifies everything that is great in life. He doesnt complaine he doesnt nag and he is respectful. He is what the NBA used to be about. Remeber, The NBA used to be a place for heros where the ball moved around to everyone. He is bringing back the good old days right?
It's because most people at 7'6" are clumsy and awkward. Yao is fluid and can score from almost anywhere, not just be a pillar on D. I think that being Asian does have something to do with it because most Asians are small and he's amazingly big, but the "freak of nature" argument is stronger. Shawn Bradley, Gheorghe Muresan, Manute Bol, etc; they were all tall, but stiffs. Yao is not a stiff at 7'6", and he has a myriad of skills that has us left in awe. Remember that pass dropped over his head? The pass he slapped over to a cutting Mobley(?) The blocks he had on Shaq? The scoring display he put on against the Mavs? All these things make him an attraction at 7'6": because he doesn't play like a clumsy bumbling fool like everyone 7'5"+ has in the past.
The reason Yao is so popular is not because of his nationality. It's about his attitude, his personality and his charisma.
you may have a point--tim duncan is also polite, respectful, tall, plays hard, and has major game, yet he is not nearly as popular as he should be.
You know, sadly there are plenty of people who would say the same (or worse) about Americans. The reason why Yao sells whatever he sells and makes Visa commercials is because there are WAY more people in China (aside from the personality part).
Are you joking ? Yao Ming is pretty damned ugly for an Asian guy. He's no Patrick Ewing, but I can't say that he's good looking by any stretch of the imagination. I really think that Yao is popular in the same way that Gheorghe Muresan was when he played for Washington... he's tall and goofy with a personable and friendly attitude. (Remember those Snickers commercials ? LOL) He's high profile, he's family friendly and he's actually decent basketball-wise. Other than that, is it's really all marketing. We're talking someone who's automatically popular on a global scale. Marketers see this and push harder for exposure... and they're able to do this because he has an angle to exploit, as opposed to a great number of equally good basketball players who would be hard pressed to endorse anything. The fact that he's Asian offers a point to differentiate him from the market and his peers. This in turn allows him to be marketed at people who aren't even Rockets fans... and allow them just to be Yao Ming fans. Other than Yao, it'd be hard pressed to find a third scorer on any team, tall or not, to have the media impact Yao does... simply because they're not important to enough people to differentiate the product.
Yao Ming is popular because he is tall and the number one pick. Remember he is suppose to change the game. On top of that he is different from everyone else, intriguing. That is why he is popular. Its indirectly because he is asian just because theyre arent that many asian players in the league. Whats up with some of these comments how many stereotypes can people spit out making themselves look like fools. People are french bashing which IMO is ignorrant because HELLO, french people are individuals and for you to down because of their govt and create stereotypes ,like I never met a frenchman i liked except the five year old, is wrong. Y dont you take it a step further and say I never met a black man who hadnt gone to jail, or an Italian who wasnt made. Sheesh i guess ignorrance loves company.
