I don't like the definition of YOF, and it divides the fan group

I do watch games, even when I can't watch it live, I can always watch the game video that you and other guys provided.

. Thanks a lot for that.

 

To be fair, didn't he just say"We all agree TMac is now a better player, who should be the first option in this team."

I think both sides have a valid point. The problem has been neither side is listening to the other side.

 

I agree both sides have some valid points. Sura always plays hard, but he does jack up bricks without looking for Yao sometimes. In fact, when magic almost came back from down 21 2 days ago, it's mainly because Sura, Strickland and Howard put up brick after brick.

 

I have to wholeheartly agree this observation.

 

I also hate the term "YOF" for the simple fact that it could be misleading. I know what it stands for but what does it mean? Does everyone have the same definiton for it and what qualifies someone to be a YOF? I became a Rockets fan b/c of SF and I'm even a bigger fan when Yao joined since i'm asian...and there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. To be a fan of someone or something you have to start some where right?

What does bug me and is flawed, is when I'm being labled a YOF b/c I was one of the few people who agreed that Sura doesn't pass the ball to Yao enough, even though there's a logical explantation for it. Yao was feeling it in the game, it just make sense to get him more touches being the 2nd option, rather than having a role player in that case with Sura who's having an off night offensively but got as much touches as Yao. Its that simple. If Yao had sucked that night, than by all means have everybody else shoot but him. Even though I'm a big Yao fan, I also hated him for certain things he does on the court. So does that mean I'm taking Yao over the team? Hell no...I want the Rockets to win game the easiest way, the right way.

Here's a question that needs to be ask. If we had lost that game would we be chewing Sura up for not passing the ball to Yao? Having been there before with SF, I think the obvoius answer is yes. Thats just pretty much contradict what everyone was saying. I guess wins cures everything.

 

I think the real problem is the combination of three particular forces in this specific case:

1. The admiration of a individual player.
2. A lack of fundamental knowledge of the NBA and basketball in general.
3. A difference in approach to posting and how players play based on culture and societal belief structure.

The combination of these issues creates a lot of disharmony because it divides the average Rocket/NBA fan from someone following Yao and basketball maybe for the first time.

For many of us who have been fans of the NBA (basketball in general) and the Rockets for 10, 15, 20, 30 years, there is a tendency to be less than patient with someone who doesn't have a lot of knowledge of the game, let alone someone who attempts to discuss its intricacies. This is a failing on our part. Our lack of patience is something born out of years of "paying dues" and we treat it as a badge of honor, often despite our lack of overall knowledge.

There is also the strong tie to the city and team that has been here for a very long time - something that is hard to quantify and even harder to understand if you don't feel that way.

For those who are new to the game, particularly through Yao, there is the struggle to fit in with fans who, in some ways, are hard on Yao because Houston has such a long tradition of great big men. We tend to hold him to a standard that he may just never fit.

There is also the cultural boundry to cross to realize that fans can be harsh (note: Detroit) in their assesments of players. Plus, there is all manner of fan from those who really know the game to those who casually watch to fantasy geeks who see things differently from many others.

If I could give advice to people, it would go something like this:

To long-time Rockets fans:

Go easy on the Yao fans. Many of them just want to root for the guy they admire and they are bringing new blood and new energy to a franchise that has sorely needed it. Be patient with them when they don't fully understand things and don't think you know everything about the game because you don't or you'd be working in it for a living.

To the Yao fans:

Try not to take things too personally. Learn as much as you can about the game and about the history of the team and NBA. It will serve you well. Be happy that Yao plays in a place like Houston where the average fan is about 100 times less angry and/or violent as the fans in most big cities around the nation. Even if you don't care much about the team, try to not spend a ton of time focused on what the team can do to make your guy better. This is a team sport after all.

I'm glad we have lots of diverse fans. I think it is great for the sport and for the Rockets.

 

I just don't like the guys who bash this team and want Yao to go to thier home city or whatever

I call them 'The Bay City Bastards'

 

I agree, however, keep in mind that this is a Rockets board, not a Yao board. The predominant reason for people being here is to check out the TEAM, not an individual player. So, there has to be some understanding that this is a place for fans of the team FIRST and Yao a distant second.

 

Actually....if you had noticed....I dont normally use the label....it gets used today cause the thread was asking about it....

I admit to using it quite a bit in the early days....I was one of the ones that started using it often when it was first used...but after one of the many discussions about this topic....I decided to avoid it if I could.

now....as far as your assertion that being a Rockets fan is less noble than being a Yao fan....read Jeff's most excellent explanation of why that is not the case....I dont see any reason to try to explain it when someone with a much better way with words has already done so.

re: facts and reasoning

well...that is amatter of viewpoints isnt it?
those of us who have been following the game for all our lives apprently have a different definition of facts as it pertains to bball than some of our newer fans do.

once again....read Jeffs post above for a view into why this is so.

by the way......you are gonna catch hell for attempting to roast a player who, 1) doesnt deserve it and 2) is plaing so well that he is almost as responsible for the good play of the team as our stars...

we take umbrage when that occurs...particularly when many of us try to explain why yall are being unfair and yall dont seem to care to read our explanations.....

 

once again....

most people use the label when they have already explained things and yall seem to ignore the explanation.

some explanations are not just someones opinions...they are the facts of life as it pertains to a professional basketball game.


heh....the one-two punch of the reasoned peacemaker approahc of Jeff ...and the biting sarcasm of Clutch....


this thread is now complete......and with only one fowl reference..

 

I thought we are way past that now. I am not going to call "6 fowls" in Yao's chinese restaurant thread blatant racial-slur, but it is racially insensitive. I don't have to justify my reasoning of it to you, who are obviously from a different culture. Just because it is not racially insensitive to you, it doesn't mean it is not racially insensitive to me.

Clutch, your post is nothing but steorotyping and cheap labeling.

 

and just as sure as Hank Hill fishing with crack rocks...the fish has taken the bait..

 

The joke was pretty mediocre but the reaction to the joke was priceless

 

Can I use that as my signature? Just thought I'de ask before I take, you know .. .

 

If you over-react again when Clutch gives you a hard time about the last time you over-reacted.............you are lancet.