except when he's fronted, which almost every team will do in crunch time, and we end up passing it around the perimeter until the clock winds down then we either turn it over or throw up a wild shot to beat the buzzer This was the main (only) problem with Yao on offense last year. I don't know how we can fix it (that will be Adelman's job), but we won't be elite until we do.
what about Yao changes himself into the time he entered the league? at 2003, Yao was a bit thinner and more movable, more flexible, and also faster, with these characteristics Yao will fit into our current quik-tempo offense. What Yao needs to do is that he will lose some weight. The other advantage is that Yao won't be so fragile if he loses his weight, because his feet don't need to hold up his more weight then. You can see Yao rarely got injuried at the beginning of his career in NBA. On defense, it's also good. When Yao can move faster, He is going to defense pick n roll from opponent well. also probably with more blocks a game. SO what do you think??
I thought Yao will be limited to 20 min a night like big Z was for at least one season. We will not see the old 35 min a night Yao Ming for another two seasons when he will be 32. The more I think about, the more I don't feel Yao will have a place with this team after next season. On top of that, I don't feel Yao is a great high post center or a great outlet passer for fast breaks.
It's going to be interesting to see how Adelman uses Yao because his strength is the low post/halfcourt pace while his system favors the high post/uptempo pace.
<br> This is highly unlikely considering Adelman has tried it twice and it failed both times. Yao will be in the low post from day 1. Yao is who Yao is. You aren't changing a player who is in the 3rd year of his prime.
Excellent analogy! Somebody has to rebound & outlet to let the horses run. Plus Yao being an above average shooter/passer helps.
Look at this team without Yao. Now picture opposing teams closing on Yao with this current team on the perimeter. Nuff said. Actually not.. Now picture outlet passes. Yao won't even need to run down the court, feel me
While our players have been playing great ball lately, there are still times when the ball movement becomes static. I don't know if it's because the opposing defense tightens up on us or our players start to get lazy and stops moving without the ball but it happens from time to time. When nothing works, throw it down to Yao.
My crystal ball sees Yao playing until the ripe old age of 50 or so by simply walking up and down the court and dropping the ball in the hole the way the Chief did it in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.
First Yao, if healthy, is still the most dominate big in the league. Things won't change that much against traditional centers. Perhaps the Rockets will run and look for the easy basket if it is not there then they back to inside out game. Yao destroys traditional centers like Howard ilgauskas, Bynum etc. The problem for yao is athletic fronting centers. For that you still run down court and try to score only if nothing is available you allow Yao to set screens and play the high post more. I would allow Yao to play the kind of midrange shooter role like Scola. We've talked about ways to beat the fronting defenses on this board before. Only now players like Martin Ariza and Brooks are better equipped to beat their guys to the basket than Battier and Artest and even younger brooks. I expect teams to pay dearly for taking their big and moving him out in front of Yao 15 feet from the rim. So Yao fits in fine.
Have you seen our pathetic lack of size? yao will fit in just fine on defense size. he shuld be able to alter shots due to his massive size alone. he gives us an solid player who will anchor the middle and should controll the defensive boards something that has been a big problem this season. On offense is a bit iffy, he will probaly stunt brooks and scolas development, but thats life.
Yao's prime is finished due to injuries. he'll still be a solid 17-8 player who'll make our defense better in 25 minutes, but dont expect the old yao anymore.
To be honest, I think Yao will fit in just fine. Adjustments will need to be made obviously, but as Yao gets back into shape, we will probably keep the pace of our offense right now if the opportunity is there (ie: fast break off missed shot), but we will definetely give Yao many opportunities to score in the low post. The main focus is to keep Yao healthy but at the same time not limiting him to being a "role player". I think he can still be a legitimate low post threat as long as he stays healthy and our guys get their chemistry together.