Man, I was really impressed. He sounded very comfortable speaking English and even made a joke. He sounds no worse than Olajuwon did when he first came into the league.
I saw that too, he sounded very understandable, even better than some foriegners that have been here a while. He said, " yesterday at San Francisco, one guy asked me can I have your autograph and that he lived in Houston, I told him I live in Houston too, just not yet".
If he's like most of us, the toughest part is listening comprehension, especially when others start speaking fast, or mumbling incoherently (cato!).
Jeff, I know you are a fixture here, and a diehard Rocket-fan, but wouldn't it be nice if you put a little bit more thought in what you post here. I'm just amazed at the non-sensical drivel that comes under your name. "China is the same time zone as Houston"??? A special "lineup" thread-starter, when the lineup has been chewed up on almost every single other thread? Now, what is this reference to Dream supposed to mean? English is an official language in Nigeria, Dream has never had any problem with English, except that he spoke it with an extremely thick accent. It doesn't matter how Yao's English sounds, what we are all concerned about is if he can understand the language and formulate his thoughts in it, we'll take whatever accent he has... I am a bit worried that you'll be representing the cc.net on the radio. Try to concentrate before you say things...
This just in- Yao's interpretor is working on his resume. Kayman, don't get mad here. Call Jeff on the radio to let him know how you really feel.
Au contraire, Kayman... Yao's ability to speak English shows an ability to comprehend the language...and the fact that he can speak it with some degree if fluency is a very good sign. As for the time zone slip up - it's not like everyone doesn't make mistakes all the time. He got it right that they are on a similar hour as we are (i.e. 12 o'clock vs. 11 o'clock), just the wrong time of day (am vs pm). Jeff has represented CC.net well in the past and there's no reason to think he wouldn't do so in the future. He led the SaveOurRockets.com movement, lest you forget, which in itself was no small task. Now...carry on with the topic at hand: Yao's English. There's no need for this to become a Jeff or Kayman bashing thread.
In addition, the language he will need to understand COMPLETELY is basketball jargon. I read that Rudy was talking to him about a pick and roll and Ming called it a pick and pop. This guy's basketball communication skills are supposed to be pretty polished. My hope is that he can understand Rudy during a :20 in LA at the end of game 7 of the WC championship game well enough to get an edge on Shaq.
Wonder what Kenny Smith and Sir Charles are saying now.....Don't forget how they bashed this guy on draft night about Yao's "language adjustment problems." Kenny Smith kept going on about how this guy "won't be able to understand what the coaches are saying in the heat of the moment, end of the game." Uneducated statements; nothing gets me more than that, and it's statements like these that fair-weathered fans listen to and start bad mouthing Yao. Should we let them back on the bandwagon once they realize they were wrong?
Sorry, but this is a strange reaction?? What's wrong with saying that it is great to hear that Yao's English is better than expected?? Strange post.
Jeff, I always like reading what you write. And everyone is prone to making mistakes. Kayman, haven't you seen political debates before, every other thing that comes out of the candidates mouth is far fetched. And they train and rehearse night in and night out. I just don't think Jeff spends hours trying to prove himself to you. Jeff is just another Rocket fan. A damb good one.
Get a life dude. We're here to talk Rockets not to critique someone’s writing style or what they think is important. You want substance? How about Save our Rockets as in Jeff Balke. Get the picture? If not do the research dude. If you are a Rockets fan I think you owe some gratitude to Jeff. BTW, what contribution have you made to the board, the Rockets or the city? Jeff's contributions are well chronicled. Damn my ignore list is growing fast today!
If a person speaks English with an extremely thick accent and only half the people can understand what he/she is saying then I would consider that huge communication problem. So yes it does matter how Yao's English sounds.
kayman came off harsh and pointing out stuff the wrong way the problem is, it's enforcing a stereotype and shows a lack of worldliness, cultural understanding slightly, although not even close to as bad as kayman insinuates english is an official language in nigeria and a majority of college graduates in china have some grasp of english so i guess assuming they don't speak english well is just a stereotype about educated chinese and educated nigerians that needs to be erased? shrug i guess (s)he means just be careful how u phrase things out there jeff
Actually I took his whole post as an unsolicited, unwarranted and unneeded shot at Jeff for absolutely no reason. If he did not like the topic then he should have stayed out of the thread. There appeared to be no sincerity in his or her post and it was delivered with an intentional lack of tact.
A link with clips in which Yao speaks English is found. His pronounciation is all right, for a non-native speaker. http://www.nba.com/rockets/news/Yao_Ming_Video_Clips-55819-34.html
