I went to my first game AT Toyota Center when they played the Pacers in March, and I said in a post back then that my desire is for Yao to get better at rebounding... In that post, others stated a desire for him to improve shot-blocking...I am fine with his shot-blocking. He changes a lot of shots...Rebounding is key for me because I attach rebounding very much so to energy and the more energy, the more rebounding,...the better... I haven't done a check on stats, but I really think he has geared it up in rebounding...have others seen this to be so? Agree or no....
I still think Yao needs to be more aggressive under the basket he had it going when Mac was out, and then he stopped...
you forget that his job is to defend the paint. when people come into the lane, he has to focus on changing/blocking their shot instead of boxing out for the rebound. he's not mobile enough to chase rebounds like hayes either. when the ball is in his area, he does a good job of rebounding. he really doesnt need to box out when the ball gets to him because of his size, but he is prone to having the ball stripped if he brings it down to his waist. if he can hold onto the ball, im happy.
Agreed. You get the sense that the guy could walk on water and people would be slamming him because he "obviously can't swim."
I think Yao's rebouding number will always be a little bit up and down. He doesn't have the range athletically to seek out every available rebound like a garnett or ben wallace. but he's good at boxing out and he'll get the missed shots that come into his zone. for him, his rebounding numbers will depend more on the bounce of the ball. just kind of the limitation that comes along with his size. I also think this is similar in his shot blocking. he'll change more shots than he'll actually block. guys like ben wallace are athetic enough to get their hands higher in the air than yao. but even though yao can't reach the same height, he doesn't have to jump to get his hand about 9'10" in the air. it's just always there. granted, that didn't seem to bother boozer's jump shot the other night.....
I think if there was a final game situation like a game 7 of the NBA Finals then Yao would probably dunk all over everyone and crash the boards like a madman. Otherwise it seems like he has to manage his stamina and not jump much thus giving him on and off rebound numbers..
Well Boozer is a special case. He shoots a straight rainbow sort of leaning back. If you watch his swish it barely goes through the net. I don't know but we might need to get someone a bit more mobile and agile on him until Okur can find his shot (if he ever does).