Magic and Bird never scared opponents from driving to the hole and they got 8 rings. Yao doesn't have to be a Hakeem in the middle, or even a Duncan or Shaq. Yao just needs to be the most unstoppable offensive force in the game. If the rest of the team can't pick up the defense enough, not his fault. Not that Yao is a bad defender versus centers or a poor shotblocker or a poor rebounder, he isn't. He just isn't great at those things, probably doesn't have the athletic skills to ever do so. I'd still take him over Dwight Howard or Greg Oden for what he can do on the offensive end.
LOL, magic and bird weren't 7'5 centers. i like yao but no way i would take him over dwight howard, his ceiling is just way too high. yao is better right now but remember howard can develop his footwork and offensive game, but yao cannot develop howards athletic ability. howard will be able to completely dominate on BOTH ends of the floor pretty soon.
Would you take a young Zo or a young Yao? How about a young Deke versus a young Yao? Now since both Oden and Howard are younger than Yao, picking them right now as the right thing to do. But the likelihood either will eclipse Yao's peak as an offensive player far less than 50% IMO. Of course it could happen, but you can't assume it.
The stats strongly disagree with you: 1. http://www.82games.com/nichols1.htm Yao is rated #8 in NBA among all centers defensively for 2006-2007. Keep in mind that he played a large portion of this year injured. This only counts players who played at least 500 minutes during the year. 1. Emeka Okafor 98 2. (tie) Jermaine O'Neal 97 2. (tie) Anderson Varejao 97 4. Andris Biedrins 95 5. Desagana Diop 94 6. Rasho Nesterovich 93 7. Dikembe Mutombo 92 8. Yao Ming 89 Some other good defensive centers according to what you hear from the so-called "media experts" and many fans, also notice where several players you talk about are that you claim are better defenders than Yao. The higher the score the better. Jeff Foster 88 Samuel Dalembert 88 Joel Pryzbilla 87 Marcus Camby 86 Zaza Pachulia 86 Ben Wallace 85 Dwight Howard 85 Darko Milicic 84 Erick Dampier 83 Kendrick Perkins 81 Alonzo Mourning 80 Kwame Brown 80 Hilton Armstrong 80 Al Jefferson 79 Kurt Thomas 75 Andrew Bynum 73 Brad Miller 73 Brendan Haywood 72 Tyson Chandler 72 Shaquille O'Neal 65 Tony Battie 64 Jason Collins 62 Lamarcus Aldridge 54 Also, here are some players at other positions that have a reputation as being "solid" "good" or even "great" defenders that Yao rates higher than with his 89 score, and notice some of the players listed in bold that he rates higher than: Josh Smith 86 Speedy Claxton 84 Tony Allen 84 Gerald Wallace 81 Brevin Knight 70 Adrian Griffin 85 P.J. Brown 78 Chris Duhon 66 Kirk Hinrich 61 Andres Nocioni 36 Larry Hughes 82 Eric Snow 54 Josh Howard 83 Devean George 74 Greg Buckner 26 Allen Iverson 70 Rasheed Wallace 77 Chris Webber 75 Lindsey Hunter 63 Chauncey Billups 48 Tayshaun Prince 46 Richard Hamilton 25 Stephen Jackson 68 Matt Barnes 67 Mickael Pietrus 30 Tracy McGrady 87 Kirk Snyder 40 Jamaal Tinsely 83 Darrel Armstrong 75 Danny Granger 39 Elton Brand 74 Quinton Ross 66 Chris Kaman 60 Cuttino Mobley 51 Corey Maggette 47 Jordan Farmar 68 Kobe Bryant 63 Lamar Odom 63 Luke Walton 52 Rudy Gay 72 Stromile Swift 61 Dorrell Wright 79 James Posey 78 Eddie Jones 77 Undonis Haslem 39 Gary Payton 11 Ruben Patterson 58 Brian Skinner 43 David Noel 9 Marko Jaric 76 Rashad McCants 70 Craig Smith 59 Ricky Davis 30 Randy Foye 23 Mike James 5 Trenton Hassell 5 Jason Kidd 80 Josh Boone 62 Antoine Wright 37 Vince Carter 37 Clifford Robinson 9 Rasual Butler 70 Bobby Jackson 70 David Lee 74 Jared Jeffries 45 Channing Frye 41 Malik Rose 34 Quentin Richardson 16 Grant Hill 64 Keith Bogans 31 Andre Iguodala 73 Rodney Carney 51 Joe Smith 49 Andre Miller 44 Kevin Ollie 6 Raja Bell 24 Marcus Banks 18 Travis Outlaw 76 Ime Udoka 37 Jammal Magloire 35 Brandon Roy 11 Kenny Thomas 41 Bruce Bowen 84 Francisco Elson 78 Tony Parker 77 Jacque Vaughn 66 Fabricio Oberto 33 Earl Watson 47 Damien Wilkins 23 Mickael Gelabale 22 Chris Bosh 82 T.J. ford 76 Anthony Parker 71 Joey Graham 29 Morris Peterson 28 Ronnie Brewer 81 Andrei Kirilenko 79 Derek Fisher 39 Carlos Boozer 37 Gordan Giricek 30 Matt Harpring 21 Deron Williams 3 Caron Butler 67 Andray Blatche 61 Etan Thomas 58 Antonio Daniels 13 Deshawn Stevenson 9 2. For NBA CAREER among active players, Yao is ranked #5 in defensive rating: http://www.basketball-reference.com/leaders/DRtg_active.html Keep in mind that career stats supersede stats for just last year only. Also keep in mind that this only counts players that played at least 3,000 minutes during their career. The lower the score the better. Career Defensive Rating Active Players: 1. Ben Wallace 93.3 2. Tim Duncan 93.7 3. Marcus Camby 97.2 4. Jermaine O'Neal 98.4 5. Yao Ming 98.6 6. Malik Rose 98.7 7. Kenyon Martin 98.9 8. Dikembe Mutombo 99.1 9. Shawn Marion 99.2 10. Alonzo Mourning 99.3 11. Kevin Garnett 99.5 12. Jeff Foster 99.5 13. Kelvin Cato 99.8 14. Tyson Chandler 100.0 15. Andrei Kirilenko 100.1 16. Rasho Nesterovic 100.4 17. Shaquille O'Neal 100.5 18. Theo Ratliff 100.8 19. Chris Webber 100.8 20. Rasheed Wallace 100.9 21. Jason Kidd 101.0 22. Robert Horry 101.0 23. Kurt Thomas 101.1 24. Ron Artest 101.3 25. Bonzi Wells 101.4 26. Bruce Bowen 101.7 27. Bo Outlaw 101.7 28. Jason Collins 101.7 29. Tony Parker 101.9 30. P.J. Brown 101.9 31. Aaron McKie 102.0 32. Jamaal Magloire 102.1 33. Jamaal Tinsley 102.2 34. Richard Jefferson 102.2 35. Austin Croshere 102.3 36. Zydrunas Ilgauskas 102.3 37. Dirk Nowitzki 102.4 38. Aaron Williams 102.4 39. Dale Davis 102.6 40. Eddie Jones 102.6 41. Paul Pierce 102.6 42. Donyell Marshall 102.8 43. Amare Stoudemire 103.0 44. Hedo Turkoglu 103.1 45. Antonio McDyess 103.1 46. LeBron James 103.1 47. Tracy McGrady 103.1 48. Kirk Hinrich 103.1 49. Baron Davis 103.2 50. Brevin Knight 103.3 http://www.basketball-reference.com/leaders/DRtg_career.html Career Defensive Rating All Time NBA (players marked with an * are in Hall of Fame). This only counts players who have played at least 3,000 minutes in their career. Career Defensive Rating 1. Dave Stallworth 92.0 2. Jerry Sloan 92.2 3. Dave DeBusschere* 92.5 4. Willis Reed* 92.6 5. Nate Thurmond* 93.1 6. Ben Wallace 93.3 7. Elmore Smith 93.6 8. Tim Duncan 93.7 9. Jim Davis 94.0 10. Tom Boerwinkle 94.2 11. Walt Wesley 94.3 12. Jerry Lucas* 94.4 13. Curtis Perry 94.4 14. Otto Moore 94.9 15. Dave Cowens* 95.2 16. Gar Heard 95.2 17. Mel Counts 95.3 18. Jerry West* 95.3 19. Joe Ellis 95.5 20. David Robinson 95.6 21. Happy Hairston 95.8 22. Clifford Ray 95.9 23. Bill Walton* 95.9 24. Wes Unseld* 96.1 25. Zaid Abdul-Aziz 96.2 26. Rick Adelman 96.2 27. Sam Lacey 96.2 28. Cornell Warner 96.4 29. Billy Cunningham* 96.4 30. John Block 96.4 31. Paul Silas 96.5 32. Toby Kimball 96.6 33. George Johnson 96.6 34. Arvydas Sabonis 96.6 35. Chet Walker 96.6 36. Elvin Hayes* 96.7 37. Phil Chenier 96.9 38. Don Nelson 97.1 39. George McGinnis 97.1 40. Marcus Camby 97.2 41. Leroy Ellis 97.2 42. Don Adams 97.3 43. Slick Watts 97.3 44. Mike Riordan 97.3 45. Barry Clemens 97.4 46. Lloyd Neal 97.4 47. Bob Weiss 97.5 48. Phil Jackson 97.5 49. Oscar Robertson* 97.5 50. Norm Van Lier 97.6 51. Bill Bridges 97.6 52. Hakeem Olajuwon 97.7 53. Jim Fox 97.8 54. Bob Lanier* 97.9 55. Walt Frazier 97.9 56. Neal Walk 98.0 57. Zelmo Beaty 98.0 58. Don Chaney 98.0 59. Bob Love 98.0 60. Connie Hawkins 98.1 61. Clyde Lee 98.2 62. Steve Mix 98.3 63. Jim Washington 98.4 64. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar* 98.4 65. Jermaine O'Neal 98.4 66. Jim Brewer 98.4 67. Yao Ming 98.6 68. John Havlicek* 98.6 69. Harvey Catchings 98.7 70. Malik Rose 98.7 71. Ron Williams 98.7 72. Walt Bellamy* 98.7 73. Bobby Jones 98.9 74. Kenyon Martin 98.9 75. Rich Kelley 98.9 76. Patrick Ewing 98.9 77. Nate Williams 98.9 78. Herm Gilliam 99.1 79. Jim Price 99.1 80. Dikembe Mutombo 99.1 81. Rick Barry* 99.1 82. Shawn Marion 99.2 83. Larry Steele 99.3 84. Alonzo Mourning 99.3 85. Bob McAdoo * 99.3 86. Dick Barnett 99.3 87. Kevin Garnett 99.5 88. Jeff Foster 99.5 89. Truck Robinson 99.6 90. Marvin Webster 99.6 91. Rick Roberson 99.6 92. Alvan Adams 99.7 93. Kelvin Cato 99.8 94. Butch Beard 99.8 95. Charlie Ward 99.9 96. Keith Erickson 99.9 97. Darryl Dawkins 99.9 98. Tyson Chandler 100.0 99. Jim Chones 100.0 100. Greg Ostertag 100.0 Also note that from above for those fans worried about the defense slipping under Adelman because Van Gundy is gone, they should note that apparently there are three other NBA head coaches, Sloan, Adelman, and Jackson that also know a thing or two about defense. 3. Defensive Composite Scores (DCS) is a new defensive metric, which uses FG% against, +/- when on court, Defensive Rating, then adjusts the rating according to the percentage of minutes played against starters/bench. Keep in mind that these are the sorts of saber metrics data that the Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey uses as they are considered the most detailed and accurate. Basically, these are considered the most accurate defensive stats that there are. The higher the score the better. The scores for last year are computed as follows per team. Please note that I only included players that played more than 500 minutes (I did the calculation): Atlanta Hawks Speedy Claxton 24.23 Zaza Pachulia 23.36 Josh Smith 20.61 Josh Childress 8.27 Joe Johnson 0.07 Marvin Williams -3.55 Shelden Williams -8.15 Lorenzen Wright -17.32 Royal Ivey -29.73 Anthony Johnson-29.81 Salim Stoudamire -33.31 Solomon Jones -41.13 Tyronn Lue -50.79 Boston Celtics Rajon Rondo 33.92 Kendrick Perkins 20.47 Al Jefferson 18.18 Leon Powe 16.12 Tony Allen 9.62 Paul Pierce 3.72 Delonte West -7.32 Brian Scalabrine -10.62 Allan Ray -11.10 Ryan Gomes -19.21 Gerald Green -22.60 Wally Szczerbiak -25.00 Sebastian Telfair -28.49 Charlotte Bobcats Emeka Okafor 39.14 Raymond Felton 14.50 Gerald Wallace 10.63 Walter Herrmann 4.21 Derek Anderson 4.00 Brevin Knight 1.41 Sean May -4.86 Matt Carroll-13.78 Primoz Brezec -28.33 Adam Morrison -28.60 Jeff Mcinnis-32.12 Jake Voskuhl -40.66 Chicago Bulls Tyrus Thomas 48.47 Luol Deng 42.12 Ben Wallace 41.14 P.J. Brown 39.56 Chris Duhon 29.42 Kirk Hinrich 24.13 Ben Gordon 20.30 Thabo Sefolosha 15.29 Andres Nocioni 10.09 Adrian Griffin 2.60 Malik Allen -0.47 Cleveland Cavaliers Zydrunas Ilgauskus 49.94 Lebron James 37.08 Sasha Pavlovic 35.11 Larry Hughes 27.83 Anderson Varejao 22.77 Drew Gooden 16.75 Eric Snow 16.09 Donyell Marshall 10.11 Daniel Gibson -1.07 Damon Jones -17.06 Dallas Mavericks Devin Harris 47.64 Erick Dampier 39.30 Dirk Nowitzki 34.58 Josh Howard 30.75 Jason Terry 13.80 Desagana Diop 8.15 Devean George 3.50 Jerry Stackhouse -4.91 Austin Croshere -10.48 Greg Buckner -21.12 Denver Nuggets Marcus Camby 34.98 Nene Hilario 23.82 Reggie Evans 18.36 Allen Iverson 12.22 Yakhouba Diawara -5.48 Linas Kleiza -5.84 J.R. Smith -12.60 Eduardo Najera -12.93 Steve Blake -14.44 Carmelo Anthony -20.63 Detroit Pistons Jason Maxiell 26.08 Rasheed Wallace 20.37 Tayshaun Prince 17.71 Antonio McDyess 15.38 Richard Hamilton 10.72 Carlos Delfino 8.23 Chauncey Billups 6.67 Chris Webber 2.89 Nazr Mohammed -8.98 Ronald Murray -10.02 Lindey Hunter -17.82 Golden State Warriors Andris Biedrins 25.34 Baron Davis 24.53 Stephen Jackson 12.19 Al Harrington 10.77 Jason Richardson 5.28 Monta Ellis 0.22 Mickael Pietrus -13.47 Matt Barnes -14.87 Sarunas Jacekicius -20.16 Kelenna Azuibuke -44.07 Houston Rockets Yao Ming 56.95 Chuck Hayes 46.11 Bonzo Wells 45.72 Shane Battier 41.33 Tracy McGrady 40.39 Rafer Alston 34.69 Dikembe Mutombo 33.68 Kirk Snyder -7.94 Juwan Howard -9.37 Luther Head -17.12 Indiana Pacers Jermaine O'Neal 47.99 Jeff Foster 17.54 Ike Diogu 12.56 Mike Dunleavy 8.58 Jamaal Tinsely 7.49 Danny Granger -1.51 Marquis Daniels -9.80 Troy Murphy -16.08 Darrel Armstrong -19.03 Keith McCleod -25.82 Shawne Williams -67.66 Los Angeles Clippers Elton Brand 24.74 Daniel Ewing 19.40 Tim Thomas 13.60 Chris Kaman 10.10 Corey Maggette 7.94 Cuttino Mobley 5.71 Sam Cassell 2.37 Quintin Ross -3.16 Shaun Livingston -19.30 Jason Hart -24.90 Los Angeles Lakers Lamar Odom 15.56 Kobe Bryant 10.99 Andrew Bynum 3.75 Jordan Farmar 3.20 Kwame Brown 2.17 Luke Walton 1.23 Maurice Evans -17.48 Smush Parker -17.59 Ronny Turiaf -20.34 Brian Cook -21.01 Vladimir Radmanovic -25.21 Sasha Vujacic -39.32 Memphis Grizzlies Rudy Gay -2.24 Pau Gasol -12.24 Damon Stoudamire -12.39 Mike Miller -13.51 Junior Harrington -16.58 Stromile Swift -22.53 Lawrence Roberts -22.62 Alexander Johnson -25.27 Chucky Atkins -30.15 Hakim Warrick -30.37 Terence Kinsey -40.48 Dahntay Jones -48.13 Miami Heat Shaquille O'Neal 31.51 Eddie Jones 28.14 Alonzo Mourning 22.98 Dywane Wade 22.53 Jason Williams 18.70 Udonis Haslem 12.07 Antoine Walker 2.61 James Posey -0.69 Dorrell Wright -1.68 Michael Doleac -13.52 Jason Kapono -15.49 Gary payton -27.24 Milwaukee Bucks Andrew Bogut 13.22 Brian Skinner 5.89 Michael Redd 3.96 Ear Boykins -2.33 Maurice Williams-11.43 Ruben Patterson -11.87 Charlie Villanueva -18.67 Dan Gadzuric -25.07 Charlie Bell -27.06 Ersan Ilyasova -45.47 David Noel -66.69 Minnesota Timberwolves Kevin Garnett 54.49 Marko Jaric -4.26 Ricky Davis -4.30 Marc Blount -6.54 Rashad McCants -8.07 Craig Smith -8.24 Trenton Hassell -16.13 Troy Hudson -20.07 Mike James -21.37 Randy Foye -23.73 New Jersey Nets Jason Collins 30.61 Nenad Kristic 20.35 Jason Kidd 15.51 Vince Carter 13.48 Josh Boone 11.34 Richard Jefferson 6.01 Mikki Moore -1.27 Antoine Wright -4.63 Bostjan Nachbar -5.16 Marcus Williams -21.21 Eddie House -31.12 Clifford Robinson -43.49 New Orleans Hornets Tyson Chandler 23.46 Hilton Armstrong 21.05 Jannero Pargo 6.79 Rasual Butler 6.67 Bobby Jackson 3.88 David West -0.87 Devin Brown -4.83 Chris Paul -6.63 Marc Jackson -8.81 Linton Johnson -10.24 Desmond Mason -11.58 Cedric Simmons -18.62 New York Knicks Renaldo Balkman 27.62 David Lee 14.75 Channing Frye 4.96 Jamal Crawford -4.08 Mardy Collins -5.37 Quentin Richardson -8.05 Eddy Curry -10.44 Steve Francis -10.62 Jared Jeffries -17.82 Nate Robinson -19.79 Stephon Marbury -20.28 Malik Rose -39.82 Orlando Magic Dwight Howard 44.09 Tony Battie 34.90 Trevor Ariza 17.12 Darko Milicic 15.10 Grant Hill 10.73 Hedo Turkoglu 9.77 Carlos Arroyo 4.31 Keyon Dooling -4.32 Jameer Nelson -5.90 Keith Bogans -11.96 J.J. Redick -32.51 Philadelphia 76ers Samuel Dalembert 28.45 Louis Williams 16.00 Joe Smith 8.33 Kevin Ollie 8.14 Steven Hunter 6.21 Andre Miller 4.20 Andre Iguodala -0.18 Rodney Carney -13.96 Willie Green -22.32 Kyle Korver -32.95 Phoenix Suns Shawn Marion 22.58 Kurt Thomas 15.61 Amare Stoudemire 11.13 Raja Bell 9.81 Steve Nash -0.36 Boris Diaw -0.85 James Jones -1.15 Leandro Barbosa -2.42 Marcus Banks -64.61 Portland Trail Blazers Joel Pryzbilla 61.45 Zach Randolph 8.97 Jammal Magloire 0.78 Lamarcus Aldridge -2.89 Ime Udoka -6.42 Jarrett Jack -14.09 Travis Outlaw -15.41 Sergio Rodriguez -25.15 Brandon Roy -26.65 Fred Jones -27.90 Martell Webster -29.22 Sacramento Kings Brad Miller 24.51 Ron Artest 17.23 Kenny Thomas 4.52 Corliss Williamson -3.53 Mike Bibby -5.82 Shareef Abdur-Rahim -12.24 Francisco Garcia -16.01 Ronnie Price -16.16 Kevin Martin -17.09 John Salmons -17.54 San Antonio Spurs Tim Duncan 72.99 Bruce Bowen 58.35 Emanuel Ginobili 56.26 Tony Parker 40.03 Robert Horry 25.18 Francisco Elson 17.24 Brent Barry 7.54 Fabricio Oberto 7.17 Matt Bonner 1.88 Jacque Vaughn -3.55 Beno Udrih -12.75 Michael Finley -16.35 Seattle Supersonics Rashard Lewis -1.49 Nick Collison -3.40 Ray Allen -5.34 Chris Wilcox -12.88 Luke Ridnour -13.22 Earl Watson -14.07 Mike Wilks -21.47 Mickael Gelabale -21.86 Damien Wilkins -26.34 Johan Petro -32.43 Toronto Raptors Jorge Garbajosa 41.85 Rasho Nesterovich 41.07 Anthony Parker 33.52 Chris Bish 27.06 T.J. Ford 12.97 Andrea Bargnani -9.57 Jose Calderon -16.36 Joey Graham -25.15 Morris Peterson -25.88 Juan Dixon -31.71 Kris Humphries -35.94 Utah Jazz Andrei Kirilenko 35.98 Carlos Boozer 16.82 Paul Millsap 12.58 Gordan Giricek 7.96 Jarron Collins 4.33 Ronnie Brewer 0.02 Derek Fisher -3.41 Matt Harpring -12.82 Deron Williams -13.44 Mehmet Okur -25.68 Washington Wizards Brendan Haywood 21.55 Caron Butler -3.66 Deshawn Stevenson -7.89 Gilbert Arenas -13.32 Etan Thomas -13.33 Antawn Jamison-16.57 Darius Songaila -16.90 Antonio Daniels -20.66 Andray Blatche -25.68 Jarvis Hayes -58.01 The Top 25 Defensive Players In The NBA In The 2006-2007 Season Based On The Most Detailed and Advanced Metrics Data: 1. Tim Duncan 72.99 2. Joel Pryzbilla 61.45 3. Bruce Bowen 58.35 4. Yao Ming 56.95 5. Emanuel Ginobili 56.26 6. Kevin Garnett 54.49 7. Zydrunas Ilgauskus 49.94 8. Tyrus Thomas 48.47 9. Jermaine O'Neal 47.99 10. Devin Harris 47.64 11. Chuck Hayes 46.11 12. Bonzi Wells 45.72 13. Dwight Howard 44.09 14. Luol Deng 42.12 15. Jorge Garbajosa 41.85 16. Shane Battier 41.33 17. Ben Wallace 41.14 18. Rasho Nesterovich 41.07 19. Tracy Mcgrady 40.39 20. Tony Parker 40.03 21. P.J. Brown 39.56 22. Erick Dampier 39.3 23. Emeka Okafor 39.14 24. Lebron James 37.08 25. Andrei Kirilenko 35.98 Yes, indeed we really have to worry about defensive stats, and yes indeed Yao is never ever going to be anything close to great on the defensive end he simply "doesn't intimidate anyone" with his poor defensive play.
then how come i didn't see yao/ginobili/bonzi/tmac on the all-defensive team and saw kobe, who apparently was one of the worst defenders in the league based on that stat.
Do you actually think the media even pays attention to which players are really affecting the game on defense?
actually coaches vote for all-nba defense, not the media. the media votes for MVPs and things like that, not all-nba teams.
I will say Tmac, James, Bonzi and Francis. Ya that's right Steve Francis had a bunch of those great finished shown on ESPN.
Actually ... according to this you are wrong. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All-NBA_First_Team The Associated Press All-NBA Team, also known simply as the All-NBA Team, is an annual honor bestowed on the best players in the league following every NBA season. The award is voted on by members of the Associated Press. Currently there is a 129 member voting panel.[1] The team has been selected in every season of the league's existence, dating back to its inaugural season in 1946-47. http://www.nba.com/news/AllNBA_060517.html The 126-member voting panel of writers and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada consisted of national media members and members from each of the league’s 30 teams who regularly cover the NBA. The media voted for All-NBA First, Second and Third Teams by position with points awarded on a 5-3-1 basis.
my bad. but i meant to say all-nba defensive team. the coaches vote for that. http://www.nba.com/news/alldefensive_060511.html The voting panel consisted of the NBA’s 30 head coaches, who were asked to select NBA All-Defensive First and Second Teams by position. Coaches were not permitted to vote for players from their own team. Two points were awarded for a First Team vote and one point was awarded for a Second Team vote. so i'm not REALLY wrong hehe
When i said Timmy D defensive level, thats o konock on yao. duncan in my opinion is the best interior defensive force along with camby IMAO. tHERE IS A VERY WRONG PERCIPTION THAT YAO IS NOT A INTERIOR DEFENSIVE FORCE. BUT HE IS. Tere is a reason why for the last 3 seasons we've either been the best or at the very least top 4 best interior defensive team. just because he dosent cuss mother w**** or other vulgar mannerd word after he blocks a shot should make him any less scary. He changes many, many shots. obviously they wont go down as blocks, but yao is a very large interior defensive force. the utah series was a blimp on the radar. yao wil bounce back under adelman to have a MVP year. book it.
I think Scola will play about 20 minutes or more per game. I remember he's a rookie and he can be scared but I know he's a great player and he can help us
I would love that.I watched Luis at Tau cause I'm from Euro too.I've great respect for him,he is enough mature player and I beliave he can help us.But the problem is will he adapt to NBA system.We'll see.That worries me the most.And injuryies.
i think we were one of the top defensive teams more because we just slowed the game down so much. i am not saying yao is a bad defender, just limited in his impact because of lack of athletic ability. it takes him long to get his hands up and to get to the height of his jump (which isnt very high). that is why is its easier to challenge yao than some of the other big name centers and PFs. anyone with quick hops can take it in over yao
We were a top defensive team because we conceded the least amount of interior points. conversly our Primeter defense has allways been weak point for us even with battier on board. team allways have a knack of killing us from the primeter. i think the biggest reason why we were a great defensive team was because it was darn hard for teams to score on us in the low block. thats largely due to yao and Hayes. deke should get credit to. he was magnaficent went yao wentout with injury.
