Beautiful news: China vs Spain live on CNBC this Sunday!

But a big BUT, Tim duncan is part of a team made up of NBA allstars, who he has to share the ball with and he is not the ONLY option for his team,

on the other side China only has Yao as the only viable shooting option,

when he doens't step up to the plate a make big shots how can the team gain confidence in their own shots and ability to win.

Big big difference in these two players circumstances.

 

if you think Larry Brown doesn't know that Tim Duncan is his best player, and thus needs to get him the ball, then that's an insult to Larry Brown. The problem is that USA has zero perimeter game thus meaning they can fall back and double and triple team Duncan. And the interior passing was mediocre at best. You don't feed your big man when there's a defender between you and your big man. All in all, Duncan IS their best option regardless of who's on the team.

In essence, both play big parts to the success of their respective teams. CNT would get blown back to the Han dynasty if Yao wasn't there. USA would have probably lost that last exhibition game if Duncan and Iverson didn't come back in.

All in all, both players can only do so much. It's up to their teammates to step up. They did an admirable job for their respective teams but it's all moot when you're supporting cast isn't supporting.

 

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So the winner is PR?

 

the reason i am so dissappointed with Yao's game is he really did send a signal to his team that he will help shoulder a good portion of the team's success by making that symbollic gesture of not shaving for 6 mths if they don't make the 1/4 finals

but what does he in their 1st game, only bloody 12 points and 8

that's not a impact statement for the team.

 

You're right. That's why the role of the center is a little difficult to explain.

1) Other players have to give you the ball in order to be effective. It's not like a center can bring the ball up, dribble into the post and then shoot up a shot. It doesn't work that way. So, a lot of what the center gets in terms of production relies heavily on what the guards/forwards do to get him the ball in the right position.

2) Yao's effort was hampered by his lack of endurance. This is Yao's fault. And it doesn't give the right message to the team; which should be "follow me" or "lead by example.

3) If the guards play scared or passive, then it just makes matters worse (Which is what angers Yao so much).

So, Yao is in a catch-22. He needs his team to help him score. And, the blame goes to both parties involved. It's just the nature of being a center.

 

What a sad day. Yao Ming gave a disappointing performance in one game and Team USA lost to Pureto Rico in another game. I don't feel like to watch the rest of the Olympic games now.

 

Yao is much more valuable than a Rick Smits.

You can just tell by the impact he has on the game. Yao sees much more attention in the post and he also disrupts more shots on the defensive end. Rik Smits wishes he was as good as Yao is right now.

I gained a lot of respect for Yao after that game. Even though he didn't have his best game, you can tell he really wanted to win very badly. I think the only thing stopping him was his conditioning.

 

Good points. This is just ONE game. The true test of Yao's leadership is how they bounce back over the next 1-2 games.

If he stays this passionate, i think they are in good shape.

 

There's always the WNBA players. I think they will kick ass.

 

at this point there shouldn't be too many questions regarding Yao's skills. We have watched him for two years and know that he is more skilled than Smits or any other player of that caliber. The problem with Yao is conditioning, the same problem with most any uber tall players in the NBA. If Yao cant play hard for more than half a game then I dont see him ever being a legit top tier player. If he can get to that point, and he plays with assertiveness, Yao can be a helluva player.