Actually, Yao is more confused between 1) aggressive v.s foul trouble 2) defend paint v.s. defend pick 3) down low v.s. go high 4) grab rebound v.s. defend 18 ft away center
Yao isn't dumb he's just mediocre... this morning on SportsRadio 610 they mentioned how he's 18th, 15th in the league in a lot of basketball stats categories that he should easily be in the top 10!! Yao has got to step up...
Quick thinking is more important than intelligence. Yao is both a quick thinker and a smart ball player. He is tenative because he has a maniacle little coach who magnifies every little mistake. DD
There is nothing wrong with Yao, he is just in a slump, which happens to all the great players. The negative coaching method JVG is imploying is not helping the matter, either. If you look closely at Yao, the guy is under tremendous pressure, simply tried too hard. Yao is a good, above average player, could be a great one with a right system & some self improvement. You bandwagon fans need to cut Yao and other Rockets (except JJ ) some slack, they will be fine.
I agree about JVG's coaching style adversely affecting Yao's game. NONE of us can imagine what challenges Yao faces being such a minority in the league and trying to fit in. Because he's been made to deny his instincts and fundamentals that we all raved about to try to be "MechaShaqzilla" he second-guesses himself and his game loses it's natural flow. On top of that you have Patrick Ewing as a "tutor", JVG cursing him out and bashing him to the media and new teammates to prove himself to. How do you think Yao would do in Sacramento's system and how would Vlade or B-Rad do in ours? It'd be a total 180! The games with the CNT show Yao is a natural leader on and off the court but the further the Rox move from letting him be "natural" the further they move him from being a leader.
I don't think he's a "dumb" player. He just lacks confidence. (Which leads to a lack of aggression, among other things.)
The problem with Yao is that he's slow physically, where its not in sync with his quick mind. If he could improve his quickness, he will cut down on careless turnover, improve rebounding,blocking and passing. Thats wht JVG stressed Yao all the time about speed/quickness being his first priority. We all know he could score, so why not focus on areas that his having trouble with.
