Is Yao getting enough touches? During the Nets game, Yao obviously was in foul trouble... but when he was in the game, he didn't receive the ball... maybe only 1 or 2 times... Seems like the team likes to defer to Mutombo more than Yao?? Also, remember when Tmac said he would help Yao become better? How will he do that when he doesn't even pass Yao the ball? Same thing applies for Sura, he is a ball-hogging shooter that NEVER passes the ball to Yao.... Everyone says Yao is passive and soft... but how will he be aggressive when not given the oppotunities? I remember in the Nets game that when he got the ball, he dunked on Collin... Overall, the team as a whole needs to pass the ball to Yao more.. Even Steve passed the ball more to Yao than Tmac does...
I didn't read your post, but here's what I've been seeing: When Yao is ineffective early, the passes stop going his way. This is a mistake. Big men need to get into a rhythm early. Even if they're missing shots, as long as they're getting looks at the basket they'll stay in the game mentally. Yao, like most every big man, loses interest and focus when he's not getting offensive touches. That said, his two missed FTs near the end of regulation had nothing to do with him being out of rhythm, that was just more proof that Yao's a late-game, FT line choker, which I think we already knew anyway. Not that is matters or takes away from your point, but technically two of those TOs were moving screens.
Rockets don't have a real PG. No low-post entry passer either. At this rate Yao is being utilized, no wonder Team Yao is looking HARD at LA Lakers and Kobe. This team is basically a T-Mac's team now. I wouldn't be shocked if Yao won't sign that contract extension. Team Yao certainly has no interests for Yao to be at Sura's mercy.
And deservedly so I might add. I mean how stupid can you be? Clearly this is someone who didn't watch the game and is just trying to stir up the pot. Yao was 2-9 shooting the ball and picked up 5 fouls. He turned it over 5 times, but had zero assists ... somehow Sura and McGrady combined for 11 assists. Sura meanwhile shot 11-16 from the floor. Yao also missed two free throws with 36 seconds left that nearly cost the Rockets the game. Yao is going to shoot better, but he was so awful out there against New Jersey I would have thought he had money on the Nets. Hideously bad... like as low-as-you-can-go bad. Actually, more like sideshow freak bad. Bad. BAD BAD BAD. The YOF blame-everyone-else act is old. OLD OLD OLD.
When Amare has developed a jump shot and Yao has lost it, you would know how Yao's skills have regressed. JVG and Yao just doesn't mesh, YOF/YOH or not.
A few of them came from offsensive rebounds and some of the turnovers were illegal screen without the ball in his hand.
I was at that game as I posted in another thread, and man, I wanted to throw two beers at each of the refs. Their were some horrible calls on the court. Yao was getting hit, two hands in the back...it was like a wrestling match down there. While I am not making excuses for Yao, I don't think anyone can play with the no calls he gets. It seems they have gotten worse every year. Thursday's game was just one of the most poorly officated game of the year.
The Nets game is a perfect example of why JVG's coaching for Yao is bad. The refs were making rediculous calls. They let defenders mugs Yao with both hands, yet Yao made a slight contact with defender its an automatic offensive foul. If Yao still has that jumper he had in the first two years of the season, he can still be very effective shooting wide open jumpers. Nobody can really block him. Every other coach knows how to utilize his star player's strength and EXPAND their games. JVG is doing the opposite. With every passing year, Yao's game is more and more limited.
Umm... I actually watched the game... and when a role player like Sura is getting more touches than your franchise player, than there must be something wrong... Yao should be getting at least 20+ touches!
Why should I get flamed for speaking the truth... It's because you can't handle the truth about Sura and the rest of the team being selfish! By the way, I've got one of these :
A few better questions would be Is Yao helping this team win enough?,or, Is Yao getting enough points? Is Yao getting enough rebounds? Is Yao getting enough blocks? Is Yao getting enough assists? And the answers to all these questions is NO!!!!!!!! If you care about Yao's stats then this is the wrong forum to be on; a better fit would be the YOF site. If you care more about this team winning and developing into a championship team then 'Pass-it-to-Yao' is the last thing you should be worrying about.
Well if Yao was given more touches... he would get more points and more assists.... when you get him involved in the offense, it's likely that he'll be more motivated on the defensive end also.. Therefore, everything relates back to the signifcant question of "Is Yao getting enough touches?" If the team had the "Pass-it-to Yao mentality" then more of your questions would be answered
Let's examine the Nets game after it was over: Yao Ming: 6 pts (2-9), 9 reb, 2 blks, 5 to, 5 pf. Bobby Sura: 35 pts (11-16, 6-7 3pt), 4 ast, 2to, 5pf. Rockets fan: " Whew....good thing Sura came through tonight or other wise we would have lost. Man...Yao stunk it up tonight and he even missed 2 straight FTs in the final minute which could have sealed it for us. It's a good thing Bobby saved his ass by scoring 5 pts in OT even though Yao had 0 pts in OT. Well, we won and that's what counts." YOF: "Pass it Yao. We won? Who cares....just shut up and pass it Yao"
My version: True Rockets Fan: I'm concerned about the progress of Yao... It's a good thing that Sura scored 35 points... he was hot. However, his ball-hogging play is detrimental towards Yao and the team. Yao played badly because he wasn't given more oppotunities to change his poor start into a great finish. Overall, why isn't Yao getting more touches? YOF: "He's da bomb... man...Sura sux..pass ball to Yao! "
Yao is still too inconsistent to get enough trust or confidence from his teammate or coach to get many touches. With the way he played in the last game (he looked so lost), nobody with enough sanity will feed the ball to him all the time like you suggested.
