Like you I'm am still not sold on Yao Ming as a player but your article almost brought me over to your side of thinking. I need more time to convince myself though.
I'm with you Jeff... Ming's the Thing As long as no one in the Chinese gov't owned a large portion of Enron stock...Houston should be ok!!!
Great article Jeff !!! We are all rowing the same boat. However, I did not see any references to using Diazanon on my grass. DaDakota
Ming shot 72% from the field last year and he doesn't dunk that much. Most NBA big men can even shoot FT's at that clip.
I have not read your contribution yet but I am definitely in unless the politics become unbearable. However, the more time passes the bigger it is becoming. We are all very lucky and we have to be alot more appreciative of what this opportunity means. This appears to be bigger than Basketball. All the other options are purely about basketball.
Good read, Jeff. I agree that the potential positives far outweigh the potential negatives. Hadn't thought about the '12 Olympic angle though, very interesting. One minor quibble though, McNair was the 3rd pick, after Cincy & Jacksonville selected Ki-Jana Carter (biggest draft bust of all-time, in any sport?) and Tony Boselli respectively.
Move over...I'm on the bus. That article pretty much hit the nail on the head and I hope that the Rockets organization happens to read it. Can you imagine the amount of electricity that will follow this team if Ming is selected? I can't wait six weeks!!!
Nice article Jeff. I appreciated the Ghostbusters quote also. You don't see many of those. It took us having no balls in order to get enough balls to be able to get the #1 pick. Now it's going to take us balls in order to draft Ming. Well if Ming turn out to be crap it's going to feel like we just got kicked in them. What the hell I'm in!
Good take, Jeff. I'll say it again - if Ming is only the skill equivalent of Rik Smits, he's still worth the pick. And I'm not even considering marketing...only how he would open up lanes for Steve or Cat and present some inside shot blocking presence (Rocks were 14th of 29). The Rockets seriously missed the marketing boat by passing over Clyde Drexler. I hope this time they are ready to step up to the plate ala Babe Ruth (who also set records for striking out)! The greater the risk, the greater the reward.
I still can't believe that he made 72% of his shots last year - Cato couldn't do that with all dunks!!! I can't wait for the season to start. The other killer thing is how the other teams chose to defend him. They automatically doubled him to keep the ball out of the post. Life could be good with other teams unable to double our guards.
Good Article, Jeff. Everything rocket is going to go through the roof or could go through the roof, including Clutchcity.net.
Kinda? I love opportunity particularly when it is big, clever and not really harmful to anyone. This could fit the bill for all three. It's going to be a LONG six weeks. <font size=1 color="#C29780">i love it when the hangout influences posts in the rockets forum...he he he</font>
Good read....and I certainly can appreciate the marketing to China standpoint. That's really important. Still, I don't trust the Chinese government. How long have we been fighting communism? What if they decide this arrangement no longer suits them? What if they decide they don't want their people exposed to this much freedom and capitalism? They already seem to be putting the screws on Wang. I think there's a possibility that Chinese players in the NBA could help facilitate better relations between the two countries. Heck, it might help bring an end to communism. But I'm a Rocket's fan. I don't want MY team taking that risk that it might not work out. I think Ming the player is worthy of a first pick. I think Ming the Chinese citizen is NOT worthy of a lottery pick. I have no problems exposing myself to risk. That's how you get ahead. But this is a sucker bet. This is for the people that like the center bets in craps. I'm not convinced.
This is the way I see it.... We were luck, REALLY lucky to get the No.1 pick. Now, outside of of Ming and Williams, is there really a type of player in the draft that we couldn't get in next years draft? I don't think so. There's only so many opportunities in life and Ming is one of those.
im not much of a gambling man, but i understand the upside of drafting ming. i still would rather trade for marion, szczerbiak, or odom, and get rid of a huge contract from moT, rice, or cato. if we aquire one of the players i named, we will have a better team next year, and not in 3 years.
JEFF, QUESTION? What is your take on Ming in 4 years? If the Communist tell him where he can play (and not play), what happens at the end of his Rookie contract? Would you say there is about a 90% chance we loose him to New York (?) in 4 years? and we get nothing in return? I am undecided if Ming is the answer, but with a #1 pick - it would be nice to keep them for more than 4 years!!