If we pick Yao Ming, will he play next season??

Ming will require 9 different signatures to sign off on his contract.

Ming will not be able to attend any summer camps or training camp and he will miss the first part of the season.

China will have language written into the contract that will allow them to recall Yao back to China at any time.

Wang Zhi Zhi has these same problems playing for Dallas. Wang has never attended off season programs for Dallas and he has never attended training camp and he has never started the season on time. Furthermore the Chinese government is talking about not letting Wang come back next year due to some disagreements that Wang has with officials in the Chinese government regarding his off season work outs.

 

I heard he will miss training camp and pre-season but thought he would be back in time for the regular season. Wang Zhi Zhi was available for the whole season this year. Wouldn't see why Yao's situation might be different.

 

Wang is well...Wang.

Ming is the ambassador for Chinese basketball - ESPN called him the Michael Jordan of China in importance. I'd be surprised if China screwed with the team who drafted Ming as long as all conditions are met. Ming will miss summer camp but I believe he will be in training camp. China wants the NBA to develop Ming so I think he will be treated differently.

 

Wrong. Wang didn't join the Mavs until November, 2 full months into the season. I'm not sure if you guys know this either but the NBA has a rule that states that Wang has to be on the active roster during the regular season while he is playing in China. So basically the Mavs had to play the first 2 months of the season with only 10 active players.

If the Rockets draft Yao, he will not be in training camp, he will not participate in Summer Workouts including the summer league, he will not be in Houston in time for the start of the regular season, and the Rockets will have to keep him on their active roster until he returns to Houston. Do the Rockets really want this from the #1 pick? Oh, and yes China can call him back at any time they want. In other words, let's say the Rockets are making a push for the playoffs and Yao has trouble with the Chinese Gov. They can call him back, and ruin you guys chances. You guys would be getting Yao on China's terms not the Rockets terms.

 

Wang didn't join the Mavs until November, 2 full months into the season.

Since when did the NBA season move to September?!?!

 

Actually Wang is equally as popular in China as Yao is. Even so with Yao Ming being a higher commodity it will only cause China to want more control over Yao's career. They have been screwing with Wang since he got here, and will more than likely do the same with Yao.

 

I was refering to Summer Leagues, and Training camp. Either way Yao won't report until November at the earliest.

 

I don't see evidence of this anywhere. I only understand the Ming has current obligations under FIBA rules to participate in tournies this summer. Apparently, they supercede any new obligations from signing an NBA contract, but only this once. Further, his business manager does not agree you.

Further, we don't have to sign a contract that says that China can recall him. Standard NBA contracts require your presence. We can withhold a contract as much as China can f!ck with us. In other words, we can hold Ming hostage from the NBA until Stern and China will agree to a standard NBA contract. imo, that is non-negotiable beyond allowing him to live up to his current FIBA obligations.

DONT BELIEVE THEY HYPE that this will continue every year. Don't be a chicken **** negotiator that buys into all the fears the NY Media will write in the next month.

We don't have to sign a contract that isn't standard. And if we choose not to, he cannot become a free agent until he signs it. btw: I don't think this has anything to do with Ming; he sounds satisfied with Houston. This is just China posturing. At the end of the day, they want him in the NBA.

 

Well, does anyone think China would not do this same exact thing with Ming? If anything they'll be more determined to have Ming play with the National team than with Zhizhi. This isn't a very big deal in Zhizhi's case, because he is a bench player. But we're talking about a franchise player here. The Rockets, nor any other team, can afford to use a number one pick in the draft on a player that misses the first month of the season every year. Come to think of it, its almost like guaranteeing you franchise player will be injured 20 games during every year. I think we've learned how badly that can hurt a team.

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http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200111/20/eng20011120_84946.shtml

With approval from the Chinese army and Chinese sports governing body, star center Wang Zhizhi is expected to leave on Tuesday for the NBA Dallas Mavericks. The 2.13-meter center will probably sit on the bench or be put on the injury list in his first week with the Mavericks after missing the training camp and pre-season games for preparing for and competing in the Chinese National Games.
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This article was written November 20. Zhi didn't even suit up until December.

 

Yeah I think so too that the season starts in November, but I read somewhere that China would only make Ming come back only under extreme situations like maybe war or something but I don't think they would just make him come home just over some contract arguements. I think that line is blown way out of proportions by the media. Also Wang is Red Army which is a lifetime deal where as Ming isn't. There is alot of politics involved but I think Ming and Wang are not on the same page in terms of treatment by the Chinese gov't.

 

It really concerns me that the Chinese government will likely reserve the right to call Yao back home at any time. For the #1 pick in the draft, I want a guy who is going to eat, drink and sleep Houston Rocket basketball, not a guy who can't attend offseason workouts, training camp, maybe parts of any given season and who may disappear off the Rocket roster based on the whims of his government.

My greatest fear going into Sunday was that the Rockets would get pick #1 and take Yao only to be screwed over in three years by the Chinese government when Yao has developed into a dominating player capable of holding interest in the Chinese Basketball Association in the same way Jordan holds interest for the NBA. I don't want the future of the Rockets to be held hostage by the interests of the CBA and the Chinese government.

 

This is not what his cousin and business manager said.

You guys are buying into NY Media propoganda to scare us into not taking Yao.

As has been noted, Wang is in the Army, right? Isnt' that what people have said. Ming is under current obligations to finish his FIBA (?) tournies. We have to get the OK from FIBA to let him out of that. However, as soon as we sign a standard rookie contract with him, he is required to play basketball only for us, and we release them to do other things. Meaning that he can't play in two different pro leagues when he has NBA obligations. And I wouldn't be surprised to find that he can't play in other pro or for profit leagues at any time.

You merely tell Stern to guarantee we get a standard rookie contract out of this, or you don't sign one. And then Stern never gets to have Ming in the NBA.

Who honestly believes Stern won't get this done if you tell him that we expect a standard contract and for Ming to honor it. Ming sounds thrilled to honor it. I don't think he's doing any withholding.

DON'T BELIEVE THE NEW YORK HYPE!!!

 

That's exactly what I'm saying. I'm hoping for the Rockets sake that they realize this. You can not afford to have a franchise player miss that amount of time.

 

Well, I don't think all the questions are coming from the NY press. Part of the concern has to do with the situation with Zhizhi which has absolutely nothing to do with New York. I know Zhizhi and Ming are different stories, but it definitely gives a glimpse into what the Chinese are capable of doing.

But, I'm holding my judgement until I hear something to the effect that the Chinese Government (not Ming's college student cousin) approves of Houston as a city worthy of Yao Ming, and that he will be available 82 games this season. If David Stern can understand how badly the Rockets can potentially be screwed by drafting Ming and will help us out to come to an agreement with Chinese Representatives, then I will lay the foundations of a David Stern Fanclub! I stress again...NO LESS THAN 82 GAMES EVERY SEASON!

 

Maybe you don't understand what Communist China means. Yao Ming is a Chinese Citizen not an American Citizen so therefore he does have to do what his Government tells him to do regardless of any NBA contract says. How else would China be allowed to take 50% (pre-tax) of his earnings which they have already stated they will be doing. The only way he can get out of having to go back to China is if he defects, which isn't very likely or else he would have done so already. China will be no different on Yao than they have been on Wang. There is a reason that no player from China has ever played in the NBA. It's not because of lack of talent. There had to have been at very least 1 NBA worthy player out of 2+Billion people in the last 20 years or so. The reason is because the Chinese Gov. wants 100% control over it's people, Yao, and Wang are no different.

Also as much as fans refer to David Stern as Emperer Stern, and as much control as we all know he has, there is nothing Stern can do to make China agree to all of his terms.

 

DCKid, 28-yr biz student from a top program or not, I think he knows more than journalist who list to recycle provocative stories. He is the business manager, and his professor is surely highly influential as well.

You continue to sound like we are at China's mercy. That is not the case. He gets drafted; China wants him to play in the NBA; he has to play for us. CASE CLOSED. Leave it to Stern to work it out....and EVERY CONTRACT IS 82 Game, Summer League, and Camp. Except for prior commitments under prior contracts. He signs with us, and that means settling his other commitments.

Don't be so scared.

Here's the facts as we know them.

Yao's cousin is the business manager and will handle the China side of freeing Yao from his prior China obligations. I can't emphasize more the word "prior." There is no proof or any talk that this would be ongoing. His cousin's Business School professor at U. of Chicago (a top tier biz school) will handle the US side of working things out.

I'm sure Huizinga knows a little more than your average sportswriter. It sounds to me like he is under contract for his CBA team, and just needs to be cleared. And that's what they are working on. FIBA seems to be involved to ensure players just don't screw their teams to play for the NBA. And besides, why is this being read as lasting beyond this year, that would go against any reasonable interpretation of NBA player obligations under a rookie scale contract.

 

Maybe you don't understand the NBA Uniform Player Contract. If we don't sign one with Ming, he never plays in the NBA.

You don't think that's a pretty big freaking bargaining chip?

Several sources have said China want him to play in the NBA and prepare for the Beijing Olympics. They've already released him for the draft, didn't they. The rest is clearing up prior commitments. Everything else is just all HYPE to scare everyone into thinking only NY can have him, and you chicken sh1ts are letting the NY Media snowball you.

 

I'm with heypartner on this one. Stop hyperventilating and enjoy the position.

The only thing worse than the situations some of you fear is watching Yao become a significant NBA player, maybe a star or superstar, on another team.

It's going to get worse before it gets better.

My prediction: If the Rocks stay strong and believe that Ming is their guy, the week before the draft the entire league will forget about the 'issues' concerning Yao and will try everything for a chance to draft him.

 

Besides the off court considerations already mentioned, I think the biggest concern should be wheter or not mainland China and Taiwan get into it - again. Besides the present situation in the middle-east, this is one of the world's hottest political issues. But, then, if something were to happen over there and the U.S. got involved, the NBA in general would not be all that relevant.

~kountzer~