I am glad that we have a player like Yao on our team, after all 7'6 guys don't come around everyday draft. However, is YAO ever going to be the type of player we want him to be? Yao is about as agressive as a vegetarian at an all you can eat bbq buffet. It is great that he made nba 3rd team and had some games that make us wonder about future potenial, but that does get us rings and trophies. If Yao was in the NBA 10 years ago, what type of player would he be? Certainly not nba 3rd team material and maybe not one of the top 10 centers. Would he be able to compete against players like Olajuwon, Ewing, Robinson, Mutumbo all in their prime? Yeah Yao can hang on any given nba night and maybe stuff Shaq a few times, but so could the Flying Dutchman if I remember correctly. Don't get me wrong he is a valuable piece of the puzzle, but he should not be the center piece. This is not the 90's when teams could with with one dominant player like a Jordan or Olajuwon and a supporting cast of other good and decent players.( no disrespect to Kenny and Mario) Even the Lakers and their Hollywood egos know this and that is why they are stacked. Look at the Kings, Spurs, T-wolves, Mavs (bad example), and even the Pistons and Pacers. Our core is a good core of players, but we need a big time mvp type superstar to put us over the edge. Then and only then can we all get those southwestern bell phonebooks that have covers of championship parades.
Those great players in the past were indeed great, but they are indeed in the past. Today's game is totally different. All the techniques are there in the books, all Yao has to learn is the NBA game itself. We have people not only on this bbs, but in the whole sports world, kepp whinning that those great players are gone, no one ever comes close to them nowadays. Tell you what, I seriously doubt lots of past great players can survive this intensity. You might ask whether I ever saw them play, yes, I did, althouhg not live, but saw them all the time on TV. I am still watching those classic games. Yesterday, I just saw the Celtics and Lakers, championship game, last 3 minutes, the intensity was so low, not even to compare with a regular season game today. Noone presses hard, no one guard as closely as today's game. We talked about Bird's 3 pointer in the last moment again and again, but no one talked about his previous 3 possesions, 2 turnovers, and 1 bad shot, basically a legend made one out of four chances in a championship game with low intensity, loose denfense. I am not trying to diss Larry Bird, although there is always arguement whether he's over-rated. What I really want to say is, you can only play the game the environment allows you. You can not compare different players in different time, you can just compare to your peers. You miss those flash moves of a center in the paint? Well, the zone defense and close contact don't allow those things any more. Elderly people always like to say we were so much better at our times, but it's not the truth. Yes, they can pass their valuable experience regarding how to deal with pressure, games and certain situation, to new generations. But I don't think it's necessary to ask them to teach techniques.
\ A mentor can only do so much for Yao. The mentor, whoever it is cannot put points on the board or grab rebounds. Yao has to show heart and determination. Yao has to be A MAN, not THE MAN, just A MAN.
Just think about the defensive presence that yao brings to this team. If we lose him, then there goes our great D. Then what are we left with??? We need to keep him for the defense, I think he will get stronger and more powerfull, and then hopefully he will be slamming people to the ground like shaq. Everyone wants to see yao agressive, just be careful what you wish for. On a side note, I 'd like to see yao take on Karla malone in a wrestling match. Go yao!
