I'm still concerned at the ability Okur had to push Yao away far away from the basket to be out of his comfort zone. That should have NEVER happened... Yao (and the team) were banking on the defense Utah played against him in the game in late March/early April, where Yao scored AT WILL over anybody they threw at him. If Yao still isn't strong enough to either foul out, or physically dominate a Mehmet Okur, when he's mainly getting one-on-one defense... and he needs to start running off screens to score... maybe Yao isn't seemingly the most special/dominant big-man in the game.
People you don't have to be a triple threat to shoot the jumper. There are tons of centers in the NBA that shoot jumpers from the top of the key that no one ever fears running into the lane for a dunk, layup, etc. because everyone knows that they will trip over their own shoes. I think that people are advocating that maybe some plays Yao doesn't post up in the lane and instead hangs at the elbow as a secondary option instead of the first option to open up the lane. This draws ourt Yao's defender from the lane thus opening up the paint some for mcgrady and hopefully whatever decent option we can find this summer. And honestly, I think I would prefer to pass to Yao for a jumper up there rather than Juwan, Chuck Hayes, and our horrible shooting guards who can only shoot 3s at a decent clip.
My point is that if the jumper play you are asking for was more than a 2 or 3 times a game play, he would be even further out of position to track down rebounds. How much energy that would save is questionable. Further improving his stamina seems like a better option over all.
his jumper is better than all the other bricklayers on the team, thus he wouldnt have to fight for desperation rebounds cause we'd be up by 4 to 6 points.
As compared to how many other shots? And how many of those face up jumpers are from the high post area? He needs more than just the in close game....clearly, the Utah series made that point abundantly clear. There are times when it benefits the Rockets to have someone else on the low block, such as when Tmac is being guarded by Derek Fisher....I am not asking Yao to initiate the offense from the High Post, just be avaiable for the open Jump shot.... He was single covered all series long against the Jazz on the low post, all we are asking for is some variety. What is wrong with having some variety in Yao or anyone's game, hell what is wrong with opposing coaches having to THINK about our players in different spots? DD
he's posting up 100% of the time. if he posts up 60% of the time, they would be 'quality' post ups meaning he won't be tired and his strength is high. have you guys ever played madden and turned the fatique level on? its like that. if you run Ricky Williams up the gut every play. Ricky william's fatique level would go up, forcing him to go crazy and fly to india and learn yoga to relax himself.
That is a big point of concern. It seems to be the smaller guys who do a better job of pushing Yao out. Oddly enough, I feel more confident when Yao is going against another "big" like Shaq or Duncan who don't use their elbows, etc. I'd like to see some old footage Shaq to see what he did. Seems like he used to just back into the defender and sort of force his way in if I recall. Is Yao able to do the same? Would he get called for fouls if he did? I'm not sure exactly what the rules are for that sort of situation where both the offensive and defensive player are pushing each other.
Yao should learn a jab-step. Reggie Miller used the jab-step even though he never drove. Yao can too.
So, you're blaming fatigue on Yao's post-up position? Frankly, I thought he got some of the best position ALL SERIES in the 4th quarter of game 7... wasn't he tired then? I also saw some lackluster play in the first quarters of some of the games.. was he tired then? Yao posting up isn't as simple as him camping out in the lane... his teammates are still running baseline screens to get him open, and he still uses the pick up top to create a position where his man has to set-up behind him. Sure, fatigue plays a part in it... just as it will play a part in Yao running around like Reggie Miller off screens that may or may-not be defended well (chances are, the opposing team will in-fact not leave Yao open). The bottom line is that NOBODY could have predicted a thread such as this before the playoffs... not with the way Yao dominated Utah at the end of the season... not with the observation that the supposed biggest weakness (and best way to defend Yao) was to front him. Well, Utah found a better way... be physical with him... force him to fight back. When Yao fought back, he either drew fouls or got layups. When he didn't fight back, he shot fadeaways. Yao can ultimately decide which player he wants to be more of the time... a low-post devil who uses his two biggest assets (his size/shooting touch) to get high percentage shots EVERY SINGLE PLAY... or a slightly more physical version of Rik Smits... which is something I thought we were all trying to avoid.
If you're going to criticize Yao, it shouldn't be his offense. It is disappointing that he can't get positioned closer to the basket more often (I'm talking about the whole game, not just in the 4th quarter). I know it's much easier said than done, but why can't we set off the ball screens on Okur, so that Yao can get closer to the rim? We saw that Yao could not get position by himself, so why can't we help him by using picks/screens to get him closer? I wonder if we could run more plays specifically designed to get Yao closer to the basket, and whatever happens after that happens.
It's not true, many posters(including myself) already pointed out this far before the playoffs. If you don't believe it, just search in the old threads.
They did plenty of that... but 1.) its fairly predictable to recognize, given Yao's slow nature to come off the pick... hell, half the time, the defender was able to get around the pick before Yao is ready to get the pass. 2.) It also takes a ton of time to run that play, leaving few seconds on the shot clock if the defense sniffs it out... and its a play that's prone to turnover. But, regardless, they still utilize it. I also agree with you on the fact that Yao's offense is being criticized a little bit too much. It was his defense that exposed him this series, and made it seem like he was a liability. He's never going to be a great defender... but teams with guys like Boozer, Stoudamire, and Duncan are going to force Yao to either guard them, or be a complete non-factor on defense.
Why has no one really mentioned the obvious solution to getting Yao open for jumpers? PICK AND POP. Set a pick for Tmac, when he gets doubled, spot up for the wide open shot. If someone rotates over, then pass to the wide open shooter in the corner, or maybe even a cutter at the basket. It's not rocket science here. He doesn't need to be able to drive in this situation. It will save his energy, and if he is allowed to do it regularly, then he'll get in a rhythm and make them at a high clip. We've all seen the clips of him draining 80% of jumpers before games. We've seen him do it pretty successfully when he was younger. If he has the opportunity to take that shot 4 or 5 times a game, he'll be much better at than when he shoots it once every 20 games. Just let him play the game, maybe he'll even have some fun out there.
Really? Were you pointing it out when he's scoring 38 on Utah in April? You predicted Utah would hold him to under 30 points in every game? Really? Go back and search the thread from 5 years ago where I said Yao has trouble maintaing post-position, and is a liability on defense. I still didn't plan on these problems becoming that visible in the playoffs.
Are you kidding me? Far before the playoffs, I said "To reduce Yao's turnovers, reduce his blocked shots, and save his energy, he needs shot some long range open shots. You can't play him in the low post all the time. JVG doesn't know how to play offense, doesn't know how to play Yao and Tmac". Is this good enough?
