I agree,Yao is definitely moving better out there,and in crunch time,he's ready to help take over if needed.It's not just his speed up and down the court.His moves are more fluid,and that extra energy on the boards appears to be there.In addition,didn't he play like 41 minutes last night?The big guy looked strong the whole game.I really think they need to do something about his offseason and this Chinese National team commitment.In order for Yao to realize his potential,he needs to be able to lift,take a break from non stop ball.It wears you down.The weight will come and his consistency should improve.That said,Yao Ming sure looks to me(and I know some will disagree) to be on his way to being an MVP one day,and the Rockets contending every year for the next 8 - 10 years min.
It isn't his fault he picked up the fouls. It is because the refs hate him. Olawakandi has never done anything wrong. His teammates don't help on defense, and so he has to end up foulnig. Plus the big man coach at Minn. has done a really terrible job. They should be teaching him more. What do you want from Candy Man? He's been trying to bulk up his strength to play with the bigger centers because everyone wanted him too, now they complain because he is too slow and that causes him to get too many fouls. But of course he is only slow because he put on so much muscle. Also Saunders was stupid to leave him on the bench so much. He doesn't get enough playing time, so he can't get in the flow of the game, and that causes him to play out of sync and get fouls. But mostly it is because the refs hate him.
Another thing....We know Yao can hit the 15-17 footer,and has great passing skills,but I submit that his power game will ultimately be even more effective.Yao should eventually be able to get position just about whenever he wants to.A well rounded player indeed.Even factoring in another star like TMac,I see no reason why his rebounding and scoring totals shouldn't be much higher down the road...say 26 and 13.
Yao as the dual threat is the ultimate way to go. A face up game makes it easier for his inside game. Without a face up game, teams will try their best to deny Yao the entry pass because they know denying Yao the ball means taking Yao out of the system. Plus, there is times that Yao has to take shots facing the basket. There won't time to post up. Such as the two face up jumpers Yao passed in the end of the Timberwolves game. Be a complete player Yao, there's where your strength is.
for Yao to develop an all around game, that would just be amazing.. imagine... Yao starts the game in the post being real agressive.. he gets into early foul trouble so we shift our game plan for the jump shooting Yao and that frees the lane for sura and t-mac to drive to the hoop... We have so many possibilties with these two stars on our team, I am very lucky to be a Houston Rockets fan right now..
