^^it's his fault. wait...what was that, tracy? <iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VuOdf8tQXKQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Jeff Van Gundy improved Yao as a player period. Big men like Yao have bad everything from the knee down.
I was at Yao's lone pre-draft showcase in Chicago. I'm not trying to claim that I knew how his career would turn out, thoughts of Big Z and Walton never crossed my mind, but his legs were shockingly huge even at that age. No pair of feet could have supported that pair of legs. I'm not talking about his height, just how sturdy and thick they were. In hindsight: he could have been Shawn Bradley-sized skinny in the upper body and it still wasn't going to work out. It just wasn't in the cards for him with that frame.
I suspect the organization ruined his career by insisting he become a traditional post player. He had injury issues before, but what better way to increase injury risk than ask a 7'6 guy with glass ankles to bulk up like crazy? It's not really about whether he plays inside or not as much as it is about running back and forth game after game with more weight on his body. Not to mention all year with national team. Not to mention the time it took in the summer to actually bulk up. His minutes were always reasonable, I don't think he ever averaged more than 32 per game. Really loved his game and his personality. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/w9GoBstvAwc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
JVG made Yao Ming into a NBA star. He believed in him, and correctly utilized him in the paint. Without him, Yao would have failed in the NBA. Yao wouldn't have been able to play a huge part in our 2009 playoff success under Adelman if it wasn't for JVG's guidance. Yao's injuries happened because of height and bad ankles/feet.
Riddle me this: how could Yao have been such a magnificent free-throw shooter and these other clowns from Wilt to Shaq to Dwight just shoot bricks?
I remember when Yao was a rookie; he sucked. When he became focused on the post, he was dominant, when healthy.
JVG's job is to win more games to keep his job, rather than worrying about a player injury. Yao could play a couple more years under the Pop, but Pop is the Spurs GM too, he can not be fired by himself.
Per 36 numbers from Yao's rookie year: 16.7 ppg, 10.2 rpg, 2.2 bpg, 2.1 apg, 50% FG, 81% FT Per game (@ 29 mpg): 13.5 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 1.8 bpg, 1.7 apg, 50% FG, 81% FT He did not suck his rookie year.
This. The civil war amongst the forums then was Yao and mac being played 40+ minutes a game despite previous hisptry of injuries. Yao being overrun by yearlong commitments does not explain tmac being worn down from his magic legacy and not being the same. It was a lose lose situation then. In hindsight it's easier to tell Morey to move on and trade the dead horses, but Yao is beloved then as is now...
It's not really rocket science. Guys that can shoot can shoot. yao could step out and hit shots from the floor. Those guys can't. They aren't good shooters.
"Suck" was too strong a word, yes. The thing is with Yao is that he turns the team heavily half-court, whether he played with Steve Francis or Mac. You had to play to him and during his rookie year, he didn't have the same go-to moves he had later.
This- in combination with the fact that Yao was 7'6 and weighed over 300 pounds. Too much weight and stress, combined with the fact that he played year round. Which was really too bad. I loved Yao's unstoppable turn around shots and baby hooks. I loved his heart and his determination. T-Mac gets a lot of hate for quitting on our team. I think a lot of that came from being compared to Yao. Yao's body quit on him but his heart never did. He fought to stay on the court and gave everything he could to our Rockets team. I have posted this video before, but I remember watching it live and it gave me goosebumps watching Yao fight to stay on the court in the 2009 playoffs. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6jRXhj1PpFU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
It's the overseas playing for his country that did his health in. If I recall correctly Yao had just had foot surgery before the 08.08.08 olympics in China and Yao rushed back during his rehab process to play in the games. You take a look at Manu Ginobli and Tony Parker, both of whom have suffered injuries playing through a long NBA season + playoffs then going overseas to play for their country. Yao's decision to play for his country is something some of us will never understand. He may have done China a great service his in turn he did himself a great disservice by shortening his playing career. Who would have thought post Yao Ming, we would have Dwight Howard as our center now on this team.
Yao also didn't jump much or very high. A player like Durant who's constantly jumping would be more worrisome to me.
