Dear Jeff, I hate to say that, but if you check the player stats page on our site, you will find "Yao MING" Sincerely
Why is Shaq getting so much hate? Sure, he isn't the same player he once was, but do you think the Heat would have won the title without Shaq? Hell no. Even though Shaq wasn't his dominant self, he still is one of the hardest people to defend one on one and still commands a lot of attention of offense. It's no fluke that he happens to have 4 rings on his finger. Say what you want about D-Wade, but he's looking even better out there thanks to Shaq. Just ask Kobe.
I'll take this as a win. they basically only put shaq as #1 because of his career, and hell, he did help win a championship. the problem i have with ranking players by success is that if i ask the question "how much better would the rockets have been last season with shaq instead of yao?" those people won't give a straight answer. if yao is the most talented and has the best stats, then damn it he's the best.
Well, to be exact, it's "YAO MING" -- both surname and given name are capitalized, though one is in larger font size than the other. If you look at the whole Rockets roster page on CF.net, you'll find all players' names, including YAO MING, are added to their pictures in exactly the same manner, which is also in line with the way you would introduce each one of them. If I were the designer, I might think about making an exception for Yao Ming, such that YAO is in a larger font size than MING, given Yao being the surname. In the end, though, I would rather choose presentation consistency over a slight "misrepresentation" of Yao Ming for the sake of aesthetic appeal on that particular page. As Jeff has noted, however, there are still sports journalists who remain sloppy about Yao Ming's name in their writings. We use "Shaq" to denote Shaquille O'neil because "Shaq" has been the standard nickname ever since he entered the national spotlight. Same with Magic for Earvin Johnson, and to a lesser degree, TMac for Tracy McGrady. Still, in formal writings, only their surnames are used. But, "Ming" is not Yao Ming's surname, nor his nickname. Don't come up with the bullsh*t excuse that some people call him Ming because it feels "personal." Simply put, you are just a lazy ass who doesn't change your old habit. The most atrocious case is when those writers use Yao and Ming in the same article (or even same paragraph!), like the one cited by the OP: Now that is beyond the so-called culture thing. Maybe there is a reason Aaron Bronsteter only works for RealGM. I'd say most journalists/writers have duly paid attention to the correctness of Yao Ming's name. I have not seen Ming this Ming that since Yao's 2nd/3rd NBA season in the writings from mainstream sports media or any of the reputable NBA analysts. That's not to say it's problem free. Also as Jeff noted in his Answering the Chronicle's 20 Questions, in most NBA player/stats websites, including this one (the 2nd table) and this one (under "Salary Information"), Yao Ming is still listed under "M" in players' last name category. To be fair, unlike articles/reports, many of those sites and the tables embedded in them are generated by automatic scripts. But still, they need to be rectified.
Where is league's (or west?) 2nd best center Erick Dampier ? I am mad, very mad! Yao should be the 3rd best center behind Dumpier
