As HeyDude pointed out, no one really knows how good Yao can be. I will tell you one thing, though, Yao's performance this season really made me revise a lot of my thinking on him. I honestly did not expect him to reach this level this quick. Yao finished with 14-8 averaging over 50% from the field despite a slow start and a slow finish to the season. This is very good for a rookie center in this day and age. I honestly think Yao will be every bit as good as Tim Duncan and maybe even better. Looking at the situation objectively, I honestly dont see very much difference in the raw skill department between Duncan and Yao except that Yao seems to be a MUCH better FT shooter and not to mention is 5 inches taller. The reason why their numbers differ so much is b/c Yao doesnt have the stamina yet to consistently dominate night in and night out. Yao can wear down and not be able to gain as good position on the block. In addition, Yao does not have teammates that understand how to play the game and how to get him the ball in the right position. Also, when Yao gets the ball, his teammates stand around and watch. If the Rockets run an appropriate system and surround Yao with the appropriate talent, there is no question he can be a 20-10 player next season and improve on that in the future. Yao simply has an amazing combination of size, agility and skill. These traits just need to be nurtured appropriately.
i read about him in a korean newspaper. he is hyped up by them. but at the korean church, the guys that pay attention to the korean players know he is really really raw and are unsure of his talent level.
I think Yao will be one of the most dominated player in basketball before he is finished. So, I would not consider trading him for anyone... maybe except for GArnett, then I will think for a second and say no thanks. Yao is already the perfect team player. He will only get so much better when the system is trying to integrate him rather than having him trying to fit in.
I agree Garnett is a freak of nature and he would probably win a 1v1 game against Yao any day. But last time I checked basketball is a 5v5 team game. It comes down to which player can help the team more and make players around him better. We have seen a lot of NBA players with terrific individual talents and skills retired without a ring. I can be wrong but in my eyes Yao will become the type of player who is capable of carrying his team to win it all.
I do not think so.. in any case, do u also mean past players? Because i believe a certain someone named Hakeem Olajuwon is light years ahead of garnett, whether it comes to offense, defense, or killer instinct. I have not seen garnett carry his team past the first round, much less to a championship, which is something Hakeem helped do his rookie year. Garnett better than Hakeem?? Pshhhhhhhh
by hakeem leading the rockets to a championship, i meant leading the rockets to an appearance in the nba finals
Yao will be the new and improved rendition of Kareem Abdul Jabbar. Improved because he has better handles, a better jumper, and better passing skills than Abdul Jabbar. Yao has about the same quickness as Jabbar had, not quite in the same league as Hakeem. And Yao is bigger and will be stronger than Jabbar was. Jabbar arguable is still one of the top 5 centers of all time. I personally think the top 5 centers of all time are Jabbar, Wilt, Hakeem, Russell, and Shaq and not necessarily in that order except Shaq at #5. Shaq is all about strength, his whole offensive aresenal is built on power. If Shaq played in the 70's and 80's, he would be out of the league by now because of his incessant fouling on both ends of the floor. But today's game is what it is, rough and tumble. But everything that goes around comes around and I can see the league going back to the finess style of play that defined the 70's to balance out the zone defense so that the scores still range into the 100's. In a more finesse styled game, Yao will eventually dominate, just like Jabbar did in the 70's. The league defines itself by it's superstars. The superstars determine what calls are made and not made by their style of play. In a few years, Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan, along with Kobe, AI, and TMac will be the top level superstars and Shaq will be gone. Those guys are mostly finesse players. I know Duncan is a power post player, but his game is not defined by banging. It is defined by finesse moves and basketball skills, not brute strength, like Shaq's game is defined. Don't get me wrong, Duncan and Garnett have plenty of strength, it's just that they prefer to go around defenders, and have the moves to do it, as opposed to going through the defenders the way Shaq does now. When Shaq is gone, a new era will dawn in the NBA, the era of finesse moves, and much more stringent rules on contact. This will further elevate the status of players like Duncan, Garnett, and the rest. Yao's offensive weaponry will be the rage along with Duncan and Garnett. Those 3 will be the dominant big man for the next decade........at each of the spots on the front line. Look for Yao to put up big numbers and become a superstar because he makes his teammates so much better, ala Larry Bird, ala Magic Johnson, ala Michael Jordan, ala Tim Duncan. Yao is the next dominant big man, bar none. He will make Curry and all the other up and coming young big men look like the second coming of Oliver Miller and Rick Mahorn by the time he is through. Dude is gonna be great.
I was referring to that monster in the picture above Shaq! He is a spitting image of the Hunchback of Nortre Dame.
Yao will be a bigger version of Tim Duncan I think. Both are very fundamentally sound, and have quiet nice guy personas. Duncan's just ahead of Yao because of the years of experience he's already accumulated, the fact that his body is fully matured, and that he knows how to use his body very well despite in my opinion not being a special physical specimen in comparison to guys like KG, or Shaq. Duncan's just a hard worker, with long arms, a smart b-ball IQ, that knows how to use body around the court. Yao's not going to wow you with his jumping ability, or speed, but in his prime I simply see him as a guy that can make Shaq really earn his points without it being dunk after dunk after dunk, while having the fundamental game of a Tim Duncan. He simply lacked the stamina this past season, but assuming he gets some rest this offseason, and works hard on his game after every season, I expect big things from him. He has the potential to be truly special once he learns how to use his body and not get knocked around so much, and bulks up while improving his stamina.
I think some expectations of Yao Ming from you guys are way too high. I don't think he can live up to that. I feel for him for this downright ridiculous pressure.
He can be as good as Duncan, but not a 100% Shaq, Kobe, or Garnett. However, Duncan won the MVP this year, so I guess we would be satisfied with a Duncan. Here's what his development will count on: Physical conditioning. If he gets the proper strength, balances upper and lower body strength, improves his vertical, improves his timing and quickness, and especially his stamina, then he can be: 24pts 12reb 5asst 3blk (in the near future) On a side note, I think that if we get a very good PG (Payton for example) and Francis moves to the 2, we can get these numbers from Steve next season: 25pts, 5reb, 4asst That's as good as anyone not named Kobe or T-Mac.
