i absolutley HATE the way the freaking chinese government is treating ming. it's as if they own him. he's like a slave to them that reaps in cash for them. they are selling him only to the 'slave owners' they would be willing to 'sell' him to. they dont own the man. let him have his decisions and not have a hand on his neck to regulate what he does or where he goes. i have nothing against china...except the way they are treating ming like a product. this is bull and it is bad for the league and more importantly bad for houston (come on, none of us cares about anything but houston right, if this was happening to chicago we would point and laugh). this team needs somebody who can be sure to come to all the practices, training camps and games and not have some rich asses wanting to steal all his money. do you realize the CONTRACT we have to sign him to? the govt wants him to play for chicago bc they have cap room among other things. would they want a small rookie contract or the most they can get at this point. right now there is nothing that pisses me off more than the way the chinese govt wants ming to go. im sure that the chinese people dont care for this system. its not giving anything to anybody but people who are rich already.
Jello, hadn't you noticed that China is a communist state? I mean, these are the same people that slaughtered students in Tienamen Square and Buddhist monks in Tibet. The people of China seem to be wonderful, caring people. But, like any communist country, the government does things the way it wants to do them. That is just the way it is there and we have to be willing to accept that fact.
Idiotic and uninformed. The Chinese government isn't threatening Yao Ming any way, any how. Their constraints so far have been two-fold: - 50% of his pay in income taxes and fees to the Chinese Basketball Association. (News flash: most Americans in the higher tax-bracket pay 50% of their income to the US government as well.) - He has to show up for the national team. You might not really care, but the Chinese team to China is like the US Dream Team to the US. How would you feel if the US had one Shaq, and he declared he didn't really feel like playing on the US Dream Team in a few years because he's busy working on a modeling shoot in Europe? I think most patriotic Americans would be pretty rightfully pissed-off. That. is. it. The Chinese government wants nothing but Yao Ming to thrive, outside these boundaries. Period.
heech: Good stuff. I don't personally think the Chinese government wants anything out of Yao other than promotion. He is a walking billboard for China in America and that is a good thing. However, US players are not required to play for the US Dream Team. It wouldn't be a stretch to suggest that a player or player(s) might skip the Olympics or the qualifying trials to do other things. It is not compulsory and some players don't really care that much. The main difference is that Yao is compelled to play. He has no choice. And, it is important that any US team weigh those issues because it could contribute to fatigue later in the season or injuries. Not saying it will, but when you pay a guy $3 million per season and you use the #1 pick in the draft on him, you better make sure you know all the facts going in. Personally, I think it is much ado about nothing. I think that we will find there are far fewer problems in the long run than we thought this summer. I agree that China wants Yao to be successful and will very likely avoid too much interference in that process.
thanks for kindly pointing out my mistakes. from what i have been hearing lately it appears the chinese govt IS saying where he plays. they said he could not play in memphis. they said houston has to contact them (as if they own him). if you are somehow agreeing with them taking the money, whether it be to themselves or the chinese basketball assosiacion, you have problems. let the man live his own life.
