From Philly Inquirer about Yao Ming

Posted on Fri, Oct. 25, 2002

Yao shows he's more than just tall tale
Rockets' rookie impresses in second outing
By PHIL JASNER
jasnerp@phillynews.com

HOUSTON - There was a memorable tipoff in the old Salt Palace in Salt Lake City, the Utah Jazz's 7-5 Mark Eaton jumping against the 76ers' 7-7 Manute Bol.

"Man, you are big," Eaton said, looking up at Bol.

"No, man," Bol replied in his clipped English. "You are big. I am just tall."

Yao Ming, the Sixers discovered last night, is both.

Tall? The Houston Rockets' rookie center was listed in the pregame notes as 7-6, the tallest-ever No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft.

Big? At 296 pounds, he has a 48-inch waist, wears a 4-XL shirt with 7 inches added to the sleeve length, and a size 18 shoe.

He got to Houston on Sunday, after playing for his native China in the Asian Games, creating what Rockets publicist Nelson Luis termed "a firestorm" of telephone calls from reporters seeking credentials to games and all sorts of pertinent information. And Yao has tried to be as accommodating as possible, although Luis is still mulling whether the 22-year-old should do a requested appearance on "Good Morning America."

"That would be at 6:30 in the morning," Luis said.

Yao played 24 minutes off the bench last night as the Rockets absorbed a 93-89 loss to the Sixers, contributing 13 points, five rebounds and two blocks. Eric Snow nailed down the victory with 6.1 seconds left, stealing a sideline inbounds pass from Juaquin Hawkins, then draining two free throws with 2 seconds remaining.

A huge upside in the evening came in the form of 14 assists by Allen Iverson. But a somber downside came as Monty Williams limped out of the locker room afterward, struggling on a twisted left knee; he will undergo an MRI exam today in San Antonio.

When Rockets guard Cuttino Mobley - from Cardinal Dougherty High - was asked whether the burgeoning attention around the team was what it must have been like for the Beatles, he shrugged.

"It's cool, man," Mobley said. "I don't mind. 'I mean, I was a rookie here with three of the top 50 players in history [Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler and Charles Barkley]. It's the same thing."

Well, as they say in the rental-car commercials, not exactly. Yao is the first No. 1 overall pick to come from an international league; he is the sixth No. 1 overall pick to have been born outside the United States, but the first never to have played college ball.

"I worked on the PGA Tour with Tiger Woods," said Luis, "and there are days when there are some comparisons. There were times there would be 80 guys waiting at the 18th green to talk to Tiger. The day Yao got here, it was like the Beatles. I think we had eight security people for him at the airport, and it wasn't enough."

Yao made his preseason debut Wednesday night in San Antonio and his Compaq Center debut last night. Ironically, in an attempt to satisfy all parties, he ended up arriving about an hour late last night, after a visit to College Station, Texas, where he had been introduced to Chinese President Jiang Zemin. He is adamant about being on time, being part of the team, but he found himself trapped in incredibly clogged traffic, a situation exacerbated by driving rain.

His home debut wasn't enough to fill the building (9,581 was the announced attendance), but he filled up the box score in an impressive second quarter, putting together eight points, three rebounds, a block and a steal in a stretch of 9 minutes, 47 seconds. He hit a midrange jumper over Art Long, dropped in a reverse layup and later drained a turnaround jumper and a follow-up layup; his only miss in the period came on a three-point attempt from the left corner.

"He's a great passer, understands the game," Mobley said. "That surprised me. He listens, and that's a good thing. But it takes a lot of rookies time; he's no different that way."

He has become an instant celebrity, which is not always a good thing.

" 'SportsCenter' made fun of the kid [for perceived bad plays], and that's stupid," Sixers coach Larry Brown said. "He flew in Sunday, had two practices - and both were open to the public. He made a pass [against the Spurs] I don't think I've seen two big guys who would have seen the [teammate] open.

"The second I saw him in the Olympics [in Australia in 2000], I said this guy's going to be great. I couldn't believe a kid [that size who is] that athletic. His legs are developed and mature; his upper body is like [that of Sixers center Todd MacCulloch], not developed. From a distance, he looks like he's 5-10, but when he sits down, [you see] he's so huge."

When the Sixers arrived at the arena, they passed a life-sized poster of Yao; several of them couldn't help but measure themselves against him.

" 'SportsCenter' better get on the money and do the right plays," Brown said.

Six shots

The Sixers played without rookie John Salmons, still battling bronchitis...Greg Buckner said he hopes to practice tomorrow in San Antonio...The Rockets waived forward Steve Goodrich (Penn Charter, Princeton) on Wednesday...The Sixers face the Spurs tonight, then will remain in San Antonio for 3 days to prepare for Tuesday night's season opener in Orlando.