Yao Ming Fears His Return Will Disrupt the Rockets

He was deferring to Yao quite a bit in the early season. Anybody can see that. It could explain the drop in his PPG and the decline of his overall FG% to some degree, assuming also Yao was clogging the lane, which might have "deterred" TMac from driving to the basket more frequently. But on the other hand Yao was often double-teamed, which should have provided more open opportunities for TMac's outside shooting. So these two factors should by and large offset each other. But deferring to Yao can in no way be the primary reason he shot terribly from the free throw line, can it?

 

^ No it doesn't explain his free throw shooting but we were talking about more than just his free throw shooting.

 

Shooting is directly correlated to his level of energy and enthusiasm. He's not a consistently high energy guy. His level of play early in the season was somewhat dictated by the fact that he was playing a secondary role, but that was his own fault. He has to keep himself mentally sharp and highly motivated even though he might not be the go to guy for long stretches of play. That's harder than it sounds though, because he has been a first option through his whole career and this is a new adjustment.

That will be the challenge when Yao comes back. Can Tracy and Rafer and Juwan still be mentally locked and playing with a high level of energy even when they're not touching the ball and it's natural to relax because the big fella is so dominant? I have no doubt they will.

When Tmac doesn't play energetically, his mind wanders and he loses his focus. When the game is on the line, he rarely misses from the free throw line or from the field.