Okay, Yao's problem playing against fronting is at his third year now. Are we going to solve it? Is it even possible to solve it? If Yao can never solve his problem, why does JVG keep trying to run the offense through Yao. Why do we waste 10 seconds of the shot clock for the guards "pretending" to pass to Yao while Yao "pretending" to receive the pass by raising his arm. I am really sick of this picture. The success rate for Yao receiving the lob pass while playing against fronting is about 5% for the past 170 games. They are just "pretending" to do it. What did we do in practices? Did Mo try to front Yao at the practices? If Yao has no success in the practices then why would they expect him to have any luck in real games? Rockets should employ some quick 7 foot scrubs to practice fronting with Yao. Before he solves the problem in the practices, pls dont run the offense through him. If he can never solve it, trade his ass to another team. What if he's the greatest of all time, he's still useless if he cant get the ball. Sorry for venting.....
Dude, it's seriously getting old. Could you MAYBE limit yourself to one anti-Howard post a day? Put in your signature? But not EVERY ****ING THREAD, please.
Yao's MAIN problem is that his arms are too short and he can't jump very high. He may be 7'6" but for many purposes he is effectively a 6'2" PG playing center. That is why he is being intimidated and getting the ball stolen by shorter players. JVG has to find a role where Yao can conserve his energy and make shots. Otherwise, JVG will be fired. The offense is now going through T-Mac, NOT Yao.
Yao averages 2.33 TO per game for career. Dream averaged 2.96, David RObinson averaged 2.46, Kareem averaged 2.63 from 1977 (when TOs became a stat) and 1987 (last year he averaged more than 30 mins a game). Yao sucked ass with the TOs for the Toronto game, but the guy's right along the lines of normal centers in terms of turnover numbers. So lets try to avoid silly statements like Yao has the wingspan of a 6'2" PG
It will take more time for McGrady (and team) to figure out Yao's positioning. And then, he should get his 20/10. Last years game log... http://www.basketballreference.com/players/playerlog.htm?yr=2003&ilkid=MINGYA01 Note: He'll always have a worse time with the athletic teams. But we'll get better even against them when McGrady and Yao get used to each other.
Lets just run Yao as the point...that way he will have the ball at least one time during the possession without someone turning it over in the process.
I'm seriuosly starting to wonder if we'd be better with an All Star PF and an average Center than Yao. You never see PF's having trouble getting the ball and they can set their own shot up just like a center. But from a business standpoint, you'd have to be a fool to trade Yao. And the NBA is a business.
Yao has problems with smaller, quicker players because he is significantly slower than they are laterally and has a hard time holding the ball. It makes it more difficult on him that, with the NBA's defensive rules, guys can front him but keep a weak side defender just a few feet away on the other side of the paint for giving immediate help on a lob. Yao is just going to have to adjust. Teams know that he isn't quick and that his hands aren't terribly strong so they are going to force him to out-quick and out-muscle them for the ball. In reality, this is on Yao. He has to fight for better position and hold the ball when he gets it. He has learned to adjust each season since coming into the league. He will have to do it again.
Jeff, I totally agree with your post, but I could not help but laughin my arse off regarding Yao's trouble with "smaller, quicker players" Because at 7'6"that means he has problems with everybody in the league.
From the games that I have seen so far, I have not seen a single attempt to lobb pass to Yao for a dunk when smaller players front him (This is how shaq does it. Well shaq is a alot wider in size compare to Yao, but Yao's height should compensate for that) . For the past few years, the main argument against this was that we did not have a taller guard who can effectively do that. But given T-Mac's passing ability and his height, now we should be able to do this effectively.
I see problems with Yao and problems with the way the Rockets use him. As has been well discussed in this thread, Yao is not good at establishing post position, but I question whether this is a problem of skill or motivation. When Yao has faced the best PF/Centers in the game, if you think about it, he works his butt off establishing post position and is pretty effective at it (think Shaq, Duncan, Garnett). The result has been some of his better games in the NBA. The guy just lacks the killer instinct to this on a consistent basis and that has got to change. I also dislike the way we use him to set up our offensive sets. He typically sets one to three high-post screens at the beginning of a play. I understand Van Gundy's desire to use Yao's big body to create space for players and maybe get Yao an open 15 footer on the pick and roll, but so far it seems to me that Yao sets a pretty mediocre screen and at this point I'd rather see him start in the low post more possessions than not and get fed. Even if he's average at establishing post position, he needs to get these kinks worked out with in game experience and he seems like a weapon unused spending so much time in the high post. He is a higher percentage shot in the post than any other option this team will have so this needs to be the focal point of the offense. As glaring as the team's need at PG is, I really think primary #1 needs to be the acquisition of a banger at the 4, a physical rebounding power forward to take some of the pressure off Yao. Mo Taylor is a fantastic scorer, and Howard can be as well, but neither takes the heat off of Yao, especially in the western conference.
Yao is useless unless he is going against another star center. When the opposing team has a star like Garnett or Duncan, the other players aren't gonna diss their center and come in and attack Yao. But 80% of NBA teams don't have such a center, so they will send in smaller players to attack Yao. Yao is better facing 1 large center than against 1 or 2 of anything else.
The reason he has so many problems against smaller teams is that those teams do THAT much extra to try to keep the ball away from him. YThose teams know that they have a disadvantage in that area and they do whatever they can to compensate for it. Everyone says how great Yao plays against Shaq, but Shaq's teams never double, they don't sag in the paint nor do they sandwich him in between two defenders in the paint. The reason the Rockets have a hard time throwing to him with a defender fronting him is that there is another guy already creeping down on the weak side. The player, trying to throw it down to Yao, sees this and has to then pass it around the arch while Yao rotates over to the other side to try again. Guys like Theo Ratliff or Shaq just allow Yao to get the ball down low and play one-on-one. I blame the current zone defenses being played more than Yao or the rest of the team. I have no doubt, that if the league had the old defensive system with the "illegal defensive" call, that Yao would easily get 22+ pts. per game. But that's just me.
What i don't understand it why did JVG's offense involve Yao running around too much. It's like he can never stand still. Look at Shaq...he's just going to stay in the paint and watch as the ball pass around and Yao when he ain't getting the ball for a split second...the quickly run out and do that pick and roll. Why can't he stay in the same spot and probably do a spin or grind and bump and continue to establish position as his teammates continue to pass the ball around. Why does he make up his mind so quick to give up and run around doing pick n roll every freaking single time. No wonder he gets tired... And it seems only TMAC can pass the ball to Yao inside with his quick passing instinct. Other players see the floor and too slow to react when passing.
Everyone should read this line, it is exactly right. However, JVG could help Yao like Rudy did by playing to his strengths and get him off the block and moving. We saw a little of this with the high pick and roll with Tmac, 3 times in a row it worked, but Yao only caught the ball once. I think once they get this going it is gonna be lights out. DD
