Are you sure it's not our leader-- JVG? I think that wannabe leader is every bit as responsible for a lesser game loss as Steve is. In a perfect world for me the Rockets would let Yao Ming and Steve Francis figure this thing out together, with JVG watching from the East Coast somewhere.
I have seen it myself for 3 yrs of this pattern. How could it be JVG's fault when he is not even here when that happened? Well, I guess it was Rudy's fault then. Coach can only do his thing, it is still up to players to follow his plan and execute on the court.
Yao or Steve or any other star player, it doesn't have to be a pissing contest among the Rockets fans. Nobody gains if Yao or Steve doesn't live up to expections. NBA also happens to be an entertainment business. It is only natural some fans favor one player over the other. And we all want the Rockets to win. That said, your "I told to so" is anything but convincing, or even reasonable. The conventional wisdom says that Yao is the franchise player to build around. I don't think many fans are against this spirit. In reality, Building around Yao doesn't exclude an equal franchise player on the team. As far as expectations go, let me ask you a straightfroward question. What's your confidence interval in that Yao will be able to consistently perform in a 100-game NBA season during his prime time? How many years do you expect Yao to hold that standard in his career? Here is my answer to my questions. The Odds are 50-50 at best that Yao will be able to perform consistently throughout the regular season and the playoffs. I suppose you are a Chinese. I don't think you have any illusion that a 80s born Chinese kid can all of sudden physically compete agaisnt the fittest and strongest athletes in the world in a 100-game NBA season. At least I competed agaist some African soccer players at age of 20. I know it takes some magic for that cenario to occur. I am so eager for Yao to succeed and lead the Rockets to a championship. After all, Yao is my home town boy. He already makes me feel proud in what he has been doing in the past two years. I wish and pray he will win the ultimate prize in the basketball world. However, we should not be carried away with potentials. It's a cruel business, especially in the Western Conference. My gut feeling is that in order to win the finals, the Rockets must have a co-franchise player, like Kobe. I sincerely wish you are right and I am wrong. Let me know when that day comes and I will sincerely appologize to you here. Peace.
i have no data to prove anybody wrong right now. i'm just making this thread to see where people stand and perhaps to limit some irresponsible comments in the future. my confidence interval that Yao will develop into a legitimate franchise center is high enough that i feel doing what it takes to feature him as the franchise despite the risks is the correct, utility maximizing strategy. i.e. the expected value is greater than if we stayed put. you are right. i have no illusions of racial grandeur. Yao and I are about the same age, and yes, Chinese kids born in the 80s have low levels of athleticism. I can attest to that. But it's a matter of potential and nature vs. nurture. Yao will never be a KG, but he can become strong and athletic enough to take advantage of his natural gifts and become doiminant in this league.
That's it... slant your argument some more. If we are expecting Yao to become one of the best 5 ever in Hakeem, shouldn't the equivalent expectation of Steve to be around the level of Big O, Magic or Flopton? So yeah, expecting Steve to be Kidd/Nash isn't fair at all. The fact that he hasn't reached even the (let's say) 2nd tier level yet in his 5th year says plenty about his "talent." But don't bother being objective or anything.
May be you can elaborate on what "true" is? If it means "vocal", then no Yao is not a leader in that category yet. We will have to wait until Yao speaks better English and not afraid of barking.
Ming's prescence speaks for himself. And it's not very much at the moment for a guy who stands 7'6" with outstanding skills.
I agree that Yao need to make his presence felt more. I think that is the exact thing that he need to work on this off season whether is his upper body strength, post skills, shooting etc. I hope we won't be disappointed come November.
One interesting note is how Rockets fans thought about Yao when he was drafted. If someone were to post on this board 2 years ago that Yao would average 17 pts, 9 rebounds, shoot over 50%, and play well in the low post, everyone would be ecstatic. And they would feel that Yao would have a good chance to dominate the NBA given his situation: foreign player with a culture gap, never played American basketball, etc. But of course, after two seasons of improvement and surpassing expectations, many fans are beginning to question Yao. It's as if Yao's a victim of his own success. If Yao HAVEN'T had games where he dominated against the likes of Minnesota, Dallas, and the Lakers, fans in Houston might think he's just "developing". But instead, now Yao's expected to match the performance of those stars who have been much more prepared for the NBA game. It's as if people just conveniently forget how long it took for the likes of T-Mac, Kobe, J O'Neal, Kidd, Dirk, Peja, and countless other top players today to reach their level. And instead use exceptions to the rule, like Duncan and Shaq, who were much more prepared to play in the NBA when drafted.
I would love to see Yao become a great player, but I have to say, from what I have seen from his plays and words, Yao Ming is not gonna become a franchise level player. I hope I'm wrong.
Yao has the melon, there is no doubt about that. He just needs a pair of lemons to go with it. Steve could lend him his, but the would leave him lemon-less and melon-less. And that's just not a good combination for him right now during these troubled times for The Franchise.
I agree with points "A and B" and that this team will regret building around Yao unless "building around Yao" means adding another superstar of a level greater than Francis' by his side. (In other words a REAL franchise player). However: What the hell is this crap??? Why are you assuming already that you know for a fact that Francis will be gone and the team will see a major overhaul next year??? I don't like that... Don't jump to conclusions. Now this is also crap. I HAVE been behind Yao all along, I'm just not a freakin blind YOF, and I realize that he hasn't yet shown us he's capable of consistently leading this team, or even being there when we need him most. So if Francis DOES get traded (by some chance) and Yao DOES lead this team to a successful season, I will support him, and the team, and I won't be faking anything. You can call me out the second I say "See? I told you he would be like this all along"... There's a difference between being behind someone and blindly following them any direction they go. However, also know that I am fully behind dropping Steve if it would land us TMac or Kobe... but those are just about the ONLY fairly realistic possibilities that I would consider. I wouldn't want Iverson (who is the most overrated player in the league) or any other gaurd in the league for Francis... None of them... honestly.
watch out before you call other people's stuff crap. so you firmly believe that both A) with Francis gone you will love the Rockets less. B) Yao is not someone to built around and reshaping the roster for him will lead to the Rockets doom. yet if you don't concede any false judgement? if you read my original post with the level of reading comprehension expected of a high school graduate or equivalent, then you can plainly see that I make no claims in knowing what will actually happen next year. i'm only making statements which i was careful to qualify. and if you think that's crap then you're full of it. talking about "freaking blink fans," it's a pretty big coincidence that you're Rocketsguy3, right? Not Rocketsguy24, or Rocketsguy34... I hate people who throw that YOF label around like it's fun instead of trying to craft some intelligent responses.
i didn't even read this. jeez... no one except Kobe or T-Mac. so you are implicitly saying that Francis is the third best guard in the league, and if you extend the logic a little, the best point guard? Now this is also crap. I have been behind Steve all along, I'm just not a freakin blind SOF, and I realize that he hasn't yet shown us he's capable of consistently leading this team, or even being there when we need him most.
God damn! Look gs there is no way that we get McGrady. there are going be numerous deals out there that are much beter than anything short of Yao and maybe Francis as well. TMac is a top 5 player in this league (number 1 or 2 in terms of basketball skills). While I love Steve, he is lurking somewhere in the top 20 and because of the fact that he is a 6'3'' guard just doesn't compute to getting McGrady. Memphis can make a better offer (Gasol and Miller), Phoenix could make a better offer(Marion, Johnson and pick), Portland could probably make a better offer (Randolph and a pick), Boston could make a better offer (Pierce and a pick). The only way we get TMac is for him to say Houston is the place I want to play and none of the aforementioned places, among the many others that are going to be vying for his services.
