Chinese team likely to become big force http://www.indystar.com/article.php?china31.html By Mark Montieth mark.montieth@indystar.com August 31, 2002 China's "Great Walking Wall" has been reduced to a Good Walking Wall in the World Basketball Championship. This, however, is merely a mild distraction in the bigger picture. What matters is that a nation that didn't even register on the international basketball scene a few years ago is fast becoming a player. A big player. The Chinese Basketball Association hoped to have three team members with NBA connections on its world championship team, but lost 7-1 Wang Zhizhi in a dispute over his willingness to compete in other international events. They still have Yao Ming, the 7-5 center who was the No. 1 draft pick of the Houston Rockets in June, and 6-11 Mengke Bateer, who played the final 27 games for the Denver Nuggets. Those two aren't enough to make China a medal contender, as they likely will show in their game against the U.S. team at the RCA Dome tonight. But they offer an intriguing glimpse at a promising future in basketball for their country. With the sport booming in a nation of nearly 1.3 billion people -- about a billion more than live in the United States -- it only figures there will be more players like Yao, Wang and Mengke joining the NBA. Many more. Wang, an NBA free agent who played last season and part of the previous one for the Dallas Mavericks, attempted to join the Chinese team last week. But the Chinese Basketball Association refused to let him do so because he had declined to return to China to train with the team in May or commit to participating in the Asian Games. "If he wants to represent his country, he should love his country," a statement from the CBA said. "It is Wang who makes a wrong choice, which causes him not to be able to represent China to participate in the world championship." Wang, who is unsigned by an NBA team, obviously knows the meaning of the words free agent. He averaged 5.6 points for the Mavericks last season, and played well for Golden State's summer league team. He's an inside-out player, a 7-footer who is most effective beyond the 3-point line, but he has the size and skill to become effective around the basket. The same is true for Mengke, who averaged 5.1 points for the Nuggets last season. He scored a team-high 23 points in China's loss to Germany on Thursday, hitting 3-of-5 3-pointers. China's most enticing talent, however, remains the 21-year-old Yao. He lacks the upper body strength, stamina and footwork to dominate in the NBA at the moment, but his size, composure and shooting touch out to 18 feet should allow him to compete immediately, and transform the Rockets into a playoff-caliber team. "He's interesting," U.S. coach George Karl said after the U.S. team's 30-point victory over China in an exhibition game in Oakland, Calif., last week. "He's big." "His size reminds me of Wilt Chamberlain's size, back (in the early 1960s) when Chamberlain had such a size advantage over everyone. Wilt had more athleticism, but this kid isn't a bad athlete. He's more of a basketball player than an uncoordinated big man." Yao reminds some longtime NBA observers of former Indiana Pacers center Rik Smits, who came into the league as an unpolished player with obvious potential. Smits, 7-4, had a deft shooting touch from the beginning of his professional career but needed time to build strength and develop post moves. "Rik Smits was a great player in the post," said U.S. team member Antonio Davis, who during his six seasons with the Pacers often competed against Smits in practice. "Yao Ming can't put the ball on the floor and get a shot like Rik did, but we're just seeing the early stages. "From the waist down he's very strong. The upper body stuff will come with time. I see him having an all-around game in a couple of years." Until then, Yao is still likely to be a factor. The defensive respect he'll command from opponents will create opportunities for the Rockets' backcourt of Steve Francis and Cuttino Mobley, and he should be able to rebound well enough to initiate more fast breaks. "He's going to help that team just by being big," Davis said. "For him to establish his presence down low, with the athleticism they have, that's really all they need to become a contender."
