First and foremost, Yao needs to tell his government that he needs to work out in the offseason to make himself better in the NBA. His playing for China's national team dominating some scrubs in the international games doesn't even come close to the pride to China that he would bring by being dominant in the globally televised NBA games like the Christmas day game against the Lakers. Les Alexander and the NBA should compromise by providing more Rockets game to be viewed in China. Make a channel called Rocketvision or something. I heard not all of the games of the Rockets are televised in China. Bill and Calvin will then have a table opposite them with a play by play guy from China. If Yao does get the time off in the offseason, Les Alexander should then hire a personal trainer to make sure Yao works out correctly the muscles needed for the NBA. I believe part of Yao's passive nature is due to the lack of upper body strength. He doesn't need to get Karl Malone-type muscles, but the 1st ten or so pounds of muscles are the most important. I think it's like the law of diminishing returns. Hakeem was no muscle man like Ben Wallace, but Hakeem had enough muscles to withstand a lot of the punishment dealt in the paint. When Yao gets muscled up, the aggressiveness in the paint will follow. This is natural. Anyone who has worked out a lot knows this. To deal with his rebounding skills, Moses Malone should be hired in the offseason to teach Yao. It won't be any disrespect to Ewing because it'll be in the offseason while Ewing is probably somewhere else. Of the young big men out there in the league, I haven't seen any who could even possibly do a fadeaway like Yao does. Guys like Bosh, Nene, and Amare are using their great athleticism to be successful. Give Shawn Bradley 10 years, and he still won't be able to do a fadeaway smoothly. I think the time it takes Yao to become somewhat athletic is much shorter than the time it takes these other big men from even putting up a decent fadeaway or hook shot. That's why it's rare to see guys like Hakeem and Kareem. To summarize, Yao needs to muscle up in the offseason. He can do it.
I don't know about that. Amare is already adding some turnaround J's to his arsenal, and I doubt Yao can ever become muscular by NBA standards. Anyways, I think developing Yao's legs are more important than muscling up. Yao should jump rope and do lots of sprints to develop some explosion and become lighter on his feet. Otherwise, he is way too plodding on offense, and will continue to miss rebounds. If Yao could learn how to drive to the hole he would be unstoppable because he already has such a good shot. Ah well... mere pipe dreams.
I doubt he becomes very muscular. It's genetics. It doesn't mean he can't add more pounds of muscles to his upper body. I think Yao's body is not an NBA body but moreso built for the international game which isn't nearly as physically demanding. I think he can change a lot in the offseason if he had the time.
upper body strength is more important for Yao since he doesn't need to jump that high but he needs the strength to straighten up and protect the ball.
Yao will have to go back China next summer because of the Olympic game. Myabe he can manage to join the Chinese NT one month before the game, and spend the rest of the summer here in the states. He need to hire a personal trainer. I don't think the team trainer has enought time for him.
China NT is not Yao's problem. I don't see how SF and CAT improve even they stay at houston all the summer! Yao need a better coach instead of EWing! and I think JVG is not the best coach for Yao, either.
This is why I think Moses Malone should work with Yao in the offseason to get that rebounding down pat. Kobe shot a ton of practice jumpers in a summer a couple of seasons ago. Maybe Yao can rebound a bunch of basketballs to practice. This is not about Steve and Cuttino. If they don't want to improve their game, it's no concern of Yao. Yao definitely needs to work on his rebounding and get physically stronger. Working out to build muscle mass is not something someone can just do a few hours here and there. One has to devote time to it. Proper eating and sleep is needed to have the muscles recuperate. Yao can't go lift weights one day and go practice hard the next day. If Yao already had the muscles, it would only be maintenance which is not as strenuous on the body as building the muscles up in the first place. Yao can be a much better player if he does this early on his career.
Did you people see Yao last year? He worked out a ton last summer, and he's much thicker in the upper body than he was last year. The Rockets' strength coach did a fine job. Yao just needs to play like a man more consistently.
Yeah, I think Yao would develop a lot better if he didn't have to go back to China to play. He could focus on conditioning and strength building. I think if he became a bit more stout, he would be unstoppable.
Ya imagine if he could play a full 40+ efficient minutes like mobley and francis do without getting tired he would be a beast. But I cant really blame him hes doing it for his country and its just like the USA team we all want our best players going. Also I want to find out what kind of diet he's on. I know that he has his mother cook for him and I wander what shes feeding him, he should start eating some high-carb foods like pasta and such, i do this alot and can play basketball all day.
Yao doesn't need to get stronger, he can push people around and hold his ground as well as anyone other than Shaq and Duncan. What Yao needs is lots of REST. He needs to relax for a long stretch, and THEN we need to bring Tim Grover's ass over here to improve his stamina. Stamina excercises can also be adjusted to improve explosiveness, so Yao would be in much better shape overall. I'm not at ALL worried about muscle right now, I don't think Yao should become any heavier for the time being. However, I do think he needs to rest, improve his stamina, and generally tone up his body (lose some fat in the lower body, i.e. cycling). This would add a bounce to his step and I think would definitely push him to the next level.
Yao rested a whole month during the summer. That sounded like plenty of time, heck, you start losing muscle after not working out that long don't you?
I don't remember him resting for a month. He was working out with the NT one week after he got there if I remember correctly. Four-hour practices as I recall. Besides, even if he did, one month in two years is NOT enough.
You are barking up the wrong Tree! Yao Ming will never be a Power Center . He has the wrong body type and the opposite cultural mind set. He is a finesse player as was basically:- Jabbar,Hakeem,David Robionson,Power Forward Duncan.
For Yao to be able to drive to the hole he has to operate from the outside. Dude is 7-5. He can't be on the low block 5 foot from the rim and drive to the hole. Unless you consider the drop step a drive. By the way, the upper body development adds to explosion. Yes, developed legs are the base but I promise you that the more developed upper body he has the more explosion he will have. What Yao needs to do is work on his upper body and work on his hook shot and post up moves. He's already got the jumper. He already has the ability to drive to the bucket with the spin move. If he played outside more, we'd see more of those moves. Where Yao lacks is his interior moves. His hook shot while good is not up to par. He needs to learn to use his arm more instead of just flicking it with his wrist. And he needs more quickness on the low block. And then he needs coach to let him go outside or inside depending on what the defense is trying to do to him. Let him go up high and nail some jumpers like he did against Shaq. It will open up the whole game for the whole team and it will allow Yao more space to manuever inside. And it will set up the spin dribble drive to the hoop.
How did he work out that much when he was involved with China's basketball team? Yao may be a little stronger up top, but that doesn't even counter the great increase in defensive attention he is receiving. Proper muscle mass building programs requires a lot of time to be set aside. The best example would be to look at baseball players who go crazy in the weight room in the offseason. Some of them come back like monsters. Yao doesn't need big muscles, but he needs more. Muscles give confidence in the paint.
Darrell Armstrong drinks coffee before the games and during the halftime break. This gives him a caffeine boost which allows him to play with intensity throughout the whole game. Maybe the Rockets can add some caffeine to the Gatorade. Caffeine can be used effectively at times.
Get a picture of Hakeem during his early years. I'm not saying Yao can become Hakeem in stature, but Hakeem had the perfect physique to eventually become a dominant center.
I am saying that there is a level of muscular development that allows for Yao to be a much better player. I don't think he's at that level. He doesn't need Ben Wallace muscles, but he definitely needs more than Shawn Bradley muscles. A happy medium is what I think Yao should be at.
I think Yao should be traded to Goldenstate. He'd be a good fit there. Since that will happen, we shouldn't even bother with Yao's upper body.........
