http://www.nba.com/rockets/news/bighour021221.html It's in Mandarin but I found a translation copy on a Yao Ming site (sorry that poster, hope you don't charge me for copyright ). Enjoy. Host: Yao Ming hello, please talk about what your coach talked about after the Sun game. Yao Ming: Everybody was happy, but after hearing the news (Rudy), everybody felt bad and no sound was heard. We knew Rudy was rooting behind us, he was our spirit support, without him, it will take a toll. Host: Next road game, did news abour Rudy affect your morale? Will you guys play harder for Rudy? Yao Ming: We think we will fight for Rudy. Host: Next game Mr. Mean will coach, will he tell you to dunk more? Yao Ming: If i can, I will. Host: Now get back to Suns game, please talk about the first half and second half. Yao Ming: First half is flawless, nothing to talk about, problem is second half, our offense wasnt good, allowing them lots of transition offense. Main problem is that we didn't defense clearly like the first half. We had problem running zone and 1-on-1 defense. Host: Tell me what you think about Shawn Marion. Yao Ming: His shooting technique is very strange, but when guarding him, when I want to help my teammates, uou cant let your guard down, if you did, you can't find him the next moment. Host: What about Stoudamire, what do you think of him after the blocking you, did it scare you? It is clear he can jump pretty high. Yao Ming: I first don't believe he is 20 years old, but he is. He is very confident about playing basketball and he plays a very motivated ball game and is a very big offense threat. He didn't score alot, but he caused me and teammates to foul a lot. This is a different kind of offense, shows he is contributing to his team. Host: What about his defense? Yao Ming: He is very physical, and he is very good at rebounding, giving Suns lots of second chance and transition play. Host: Now talk about Sac, after playing with Divac 3 or 4 times, what did you learn from him? Yao Ming: For a center the thing can learn is that the top center in some time can be a guard, can control the ball, because when the ball arrive in your hand, it is not the final stop. You need to find other teammates and distribute the ball. Host: What about Webber, do you know his abilities? Yao Ming: The only thing I know about Webber is that he can do everything. Host: Now Rockets is in 8th place, it is very likely to meet Mavs or Kings in the post season, talk about the big diff between the 2 teams. Agaisnt which team do you think that Rox got a higher chance of winning? Yao Ming: I don't know about the winning chances. Host: They are 2 teams with very different ways of playing ball, if you can, which team would you want to play against? Yao Ming: If i can, I would choose Kings, because they at least have a center to play defense against. But Mavs, every player is shooting from the primeter. Host: This year, 4 times agaisnt Mavs, 4 losses, and lost by a lot. After these games, why do you think you lose by this much, where is the problem and how you think to counter them? Yao Ming: Right now we are not concentrating on Mavs yet, we are thinking about the next few games, we are not in playoffs yet. About defending Mavs, I think I must help often as I can, because they are really very accurate. Host: This trip to West, did you go to San Fran's Chinatown? In US, which Chinatown leaves you the most impression? Yao Ming: Not a lot of impressions because I didn't go visit a lot to them. Host: What about Chinese food? Good real Chinese food? Yao Ming: Last time I went to LA, went to a Cantonese restaurant, the Dim Sum is good. Host: This time to LA, will you go out with Big Zhi? Yao Ming: I wish he treat me to a dinner. Host: In US, when you go to Cali, see lots of Chinese, will it make you play better? And feel more at home? Yao Ming: For me, for every game, the only diff are home court and away court, not the number of Asians watching. Host: Why, lots of Chinese are there? Yao Ming: My most attention is concentrated on the game. Host: But when you know in your heart that lots of fans are there rooting for you how will it affect you? Yao Ming: What I do is that i get these thought away from me, let myself be calm, even though it is loud around me, in my mind it is very quiet.
I get the feeling that, recenty, he has shown a real disgust for the media. Earlier in the season, he was handling it well. But then, it just kept piling on and on, and now, he's just sick of it. It's good that he's concentrating on the games, and is trying to isolate himself from the media. But Yao Ming DOES show up on the big stage, so he can't say he's not affected by fans.
i like how he answered the chris webber question. if there was a list of NBA players most liked by their peers, i'm sure yao would be on it.
