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chron: Yao can't do his thing if he doesn't get the ball

Discussion in 'Houston Rockets: Game Action & Roster Moves' started by Jonhty, Dec 2, 2002.

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  1. Jonhty

    Jonhty Member

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    http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/sports/bk/bkn/1684688


    By DALE ROBERTSON
    Copyright 2002 Houston Chronicle
    sACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Maybe somebody could climb up the side of that 7-5 mountain of a body and plant a flag at the highest elevation, like Sir Edmund Hillary on Mount Everest.

    Perhaps it could be arranged to have a set of those blue runway lights that allow pilots to land planes in the dark and fog wired to the top of his lofty head.

    Bells? Whistles? An air-raid siren? How about some Day-Glo paint in a nice shade of hot pink dabbed onto his ears?

    Anything to help the Rockets locate Yao Ming.

    We're past the point of wondering if he belongs, whether he'll fit.

    There are no longer questions in the minds of any of the real basketball people about his being on a clear path to becoming quite special, only how long it will take to get there.

    We have seen him hit the medium-range jump shot with textbook form and efficiency. We have seen him wheel along the baseline to score off finger rolls with uncommon grace for a man his size.

    We have seen him latch on to offensive rebounds and put the ball back into the hoop while just raising to his tiptoes. We have seen him shrug off what might have been any cultural bugaboos and embrace the slam dunk.

    What we need to see is Yao shoot more.

    A lot more.

    Or at least have his hands on the ball much more frequently -- get touches, in the parlance -- in order to make him and the Rockets' offense more effective.

    The marketing slogan for this season says it all: Be part of something big!

    I think the Rockets were talking about Yao. Not a corner jumper by Moochie Norris or another clanker from Mo Taylor or Eddie Griffin.

    In what is becoming a rather routine waxing -- nine in a row -- at the hands of the Kings, Yao on Sunday night managed to play 23 minutes while taking just three shots. He did not attempt even a single shot in the second half.

    There is only one thing to say here: Huh?

    Through the Rockets' entire five-game West Coast road trip, Yao averaged just 5.2 shots per game.

    This is like losing a haystack in a pile of needles.

    Surely, if the Rockets wanted to draft somebody with the No. 1 pick whom they could pass the ball around, they could have saved themselves the jet lag to the Far East and the long political haggling over Yao's contract with the Chinese government.

    "That's experience," said Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich. "Our lineup is changing. And, you know, it's tough to get the ball inside. Ask Hakeem (Olajuwon)."

    Go ahead and ask the former great whose number was just retired to the rafters of Compaq Center, and what you'll get is a lengthy discourse on how the center position is the most important on the floor and that the entire focus of the offense should flow through it.

    That's just it. Nobody is suggesting Yao should start putting up shot totals to try to match Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game or wear out his right arm firing at the rim like a young Michael Jordan.

    Steve Francis is a legitimate All-Star and one of the special talents in the league, but it was the draft lottery that delivered Yao and his presence in the middle, and that got everyone in the organization -- and most of the fans -- talking championship again.

    Yes, we expect it to take time. But what better time than now, when there is foundering at the forward spots by Griffin, Taylor and Kenny Thomas, when there is no set lineup, to get everyone accustomed to the notion the offense should go through Yao.

    He is more than just the NBA's leader in field-goal percentage. He is a big man with exceptional hands, an uncommon and instinctive feel for the game, and a knack for passing.

    Tossing the ball inside to Yao on an offensive possession doesn't mean he'll turn and shoot every time. He is tall enough to see over defenses, and unselfish and shrewd enough to pass the ball through the gaps, getting his teammates layups, dunks and the easy shots you need to win consistently. Better that than just waiting for Francis to drive into a crowded lane and try to make something happen.

    "Oh, he knows the game very well," said Kings center Vlade Divac, probably the best veteran passer among big men in the league. "I think they'll eventually get used to him and what he can do. Put it this way: They'll get used to him and take advantage of him if they're going to get the most out of him."

    Say it's early, that the Rockets are only 16 games into a regular-season schedule that stretches to forever. But there are long stretches -- too long -- when Yao bobs around in the offense like a rowboat lost at sea.

    "It's not that I feel that I have to touch the ball all of the time," he said. "But I want to see more effective passes from all of our team. Tonight, I didn't think many of our passes were effective enough."

    Diplomacy, too, from the Chinese ambassador.

    The days of this being a guard-oriented team that could make highlight-reel plays but never the playoffs are supposed to be over.

    It's time for something different. Something big.

    If we gave him a rainbow-colored beanie with a propeller on top, would the Rockets notice Yao Ming?
     
    #1 Jonhty, Dec 2, 2002
  2. hama lama

    hama lama Member

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    Even the sport columnist starts questioning Mr. Rudy.
     
    #2 hama lama, Dec 2, 2002
  3. AroundTheWorld

    AroundTheWorld Member

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    Best Dale Robertson article I have read so far.
     
    #3 AroundTheWorld, Dec 2, 2002
  4. leebigez

    leebigez Member

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    When he got the ball inside he drew 2 quick fouls on vlade, hten in the 2nd half while the guards were jacking up jumpers or turning the ball over, the Kings took over. I'm just wandering what the hell Rudy is telling the players. I don't care what anyone says about AND1 Mixtape plays Francis makes, get the ball to Ming please.
     
    #4 leebigez, Dec 2, 2002
  5. TECH

    TECH Member

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    Ming was doing well for a while, but had the ball stolen from him. So naturally, they won't give it back the rest of the game, and the team goes on to turn the ball over some more TEN FOLD! :rolleyes:
     
    #5 TECH, Dec 2, 2002
  6. ruyun5

    ruyun5 Member

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    Well timed and well said.

    It is time to put a brake on Rudy T's go-slow-with-Yao-Ming plan. That plan maybe worked in his first 10 NBA games. Yao Ming is an NBA rookie, but he is in no sense a basketball rookie. He is not a high school kid. He has played in Chinese probasketball for 3 years. He played internationally with NBA players for over 2 years now.

    It is also time to end all this diplomatic talk from Yao Ming (ok he is a nice guy and will get along with teammates ). It is time for Yao Ming to take the offensive load on his shoulder. Let's face it, all the excitement about Rockets this year is centered around this 7-5 unique center. Rockets is not going to playoffs, let alone win championships, with Steve the-athletic-but-low-BB-IQ guard drives to basket and beat himself out alone all season long. We need an steady offensive rotation around the big man. In every half-court offense, let the ball flow through Yao Ming EVERY time. Let the big fellow drive to basket, shoot fadeaway jumpers, catch and shoot from 15-foot, dunk over people, get double/triple teamed, pass to other open players, shoot free throws and get oppenents in foul trouble. It is the most simple and straightway method to make the whole team play better, avoid turn overs, avoid those low-percentage shots.

    The season is still long, but the Rockets team need a lot of work, compared to beautiful flow basketball played by the Kings.
     
    #6 ruyun5, Dec 2, 2002
  7. YaoFan

    YaoFan Member

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    I like this one -

    How about some Day-Glo paint in a nice shade of hot pink dabbed onto his ears?

    ...mmm... not feasible. I guess there is only Nite-Glo paint on market.
     
    #7 YaoFan, Dec 2, 2002
  8. reptilexcq

    reptilexcq Member

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    I am so glad to see this article. Hopefully Rudy T do something about this.

    When Divac nailed a couple shots over Yao, it's like Yao can't do nothing about it, cuz he's not giving the ball. But of course when someone schooled Steve Francis, he has all the time to school back the other guy. I think it's time for the Rockets to teach Yao to be hungry, to be aggressive and not be too conservative. Yao mentioned that it's not normal for a big guy to get 30 points a game and that a big man's job is to draw double team and pass the ball. I think his thinking is WRONG and the team needs to tell him to be hungry and aggressive and need to realize that he needs to step up and bring the team back by taking more shots rather than standing and watching more shots from clanking off the basket.
     
    #8 reptilexcq, Dec 2, 2002
  9. BmwM3

    BmwM3 Member

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    I hope Rudy T reads this article!!
     
    #9 BmwM3, Dec 2, 2002
  10. Jonhty

    Jonhty Member

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    exactly.
    someone needs to get this message across to Yao.
     
    #10 Jonhty, Dec 2, 2002
  11. BmwM3

    BmwM3 Member

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    more like get the message to Rudy!!
     
    #11 BmwM3, Dec 2, 2002
  12. lycqf

    lycqf Member

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    Rudy T may tried to be politically correct, and lost the sense of controlling his team.
     
    #12 lycqf, Dec 2, 2002
  13. robbie380

    robbie380 ლ(▀̿Ĺ̯▀̿ ̿ლ)
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    one problem with not being able to get the ball to yao in the post is that no one on the team can throw a freaking entry pass into the post.

    remember when we had dream and horry was the man at entry passes. he is the same for shaq now. i don't know what rudy needs to do but he needs to designate someone to be able to dump the ball down to yao every time.
     
    #13 robbie380, Dec 2, 2002
  14. YaoFan

    YaoFan Member

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    Not sure if the following fit in this thread:

    1. I guess Rudy just wanted to teach everyone a lesson.

    2. The best defense is to attack.
     
    #14 YaoFan, Dec 2, 2002
  15. coolpet

    coolpet Member

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    how can you ask Yao to be more aggressive when Yao run all the way with guards to the front court and they do not feed him the ball? i will feel pretty pissed and I would not even want to run to the front court next time. plus, Yao do still seems lost in the offense. it should be made clear by Rudy that players HAVE to pass the ball to Yao first. and yes, Yao should be more selfish as well and taking more shot.
     
    #15 coolpet, Dec 2, 2002
  16. Raven

    Raven Member

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    100 percent correct. Plus Dale Robertson is the Chronicles best columnist.

    Raven
     
    #16 Raven, Dec 2, 2002
  17. ivan_zhang

    ivan_zhang Member

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    Maybe Yao said that just for diplomatic reason...
     
    #17 ivan_zhang, Dec 2, 2002
  18. hnjjz

    hnjjz Member

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    I can see this article rubbing some rockets players the wrong way. When the media gets into this type of things, it could get ugly in the locker room.
     
    #18 hnjjz, Dec 2, 2002
  19. Jonhty

    Jonhty Member

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    don't worry.
    at least yao doesn't and can't read the paper.:D
     
    #19 Jonhty, Dec 2, 2002
  20. Sane

    Sane Member

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    Let's not go way over our heads. Ming has said publicly that he's so incredibly tired in this road trip. For all we know, they KNOW he's tired, and just keep him in the game to keep the inside players alert.

    Ming isn't going to carry us this season. Here's what I suggest:

    We know he'll be tired in the 4th. Give him 3 shots in the first, 3 in the second, 2 in the 3rd, 2 in the 4th.

    The purpose of this is:

    If he shoots 10, and makes 10, in this league, that forces a double team.

    This helps, how?

    When they're double teaming Ming, THEN Francis can dominate effectively. When Rice is hitting, this trio is unstoppable. Francis throws it in to Ming, Ming draws the defender to the left block, Rice positions himself, when the double team comes, throw it to Francis, drive, if there's an opening score, if not, then 2 double teams means Rice is WIDE WIDE open.

    No more Hawkins and Mooch. They're good for 10 minutes a night, and certain matchups. That's it.


    Note: There are some very good threads open today. *Knock on wood* Hope I don't jinx it.
     
    #20 Sane, Dec 2, 2002
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