<blockquote><hr>Originally posted by heypartner NBA Action--Fantastic!!! Yao Bandwagonning--Fanspastic!!! Originally posted by codell Are you auditioning for Adam Sandler's role? <hr></blockquote> These fancaustic cathartic b****es after every game are eventually going to make me do a Waterboy bullrush on my monitor....I'll take y'all out in one fantastic fanspasm. btw codell: thx for the cryptic Adamdote. I further suggest inventing words when going voci-furiously fanspastic on body painting minniemingmaniacs.
I think it is his fault. He enjoyed the hype all summer long, feeding the media one interview after another. He even dished Kwame Brown. He is making over 4 million dollars a year. He's got to play the game well enough to deserve that kind of money otherwise people will start booing him. Ming's mom and Eric Zhang created a company to market Yao. Didn't you think they benefit from the hype? The people surrounding Yao are too delicate. They don't understand NBA basketball is like a street fight. I am sure Ming will understand it pretty soon. Hope he can play better next year.
I dont think it is at all unreasonable to be disappointed in his performance so far. He has really stunk it up out there. Hes a #1 overall pick...hes 7'6"...hes supposedly very skilled...and he has tons of international experience. Of course we are going to have high expectations. So far...he hasnt met them. Before the season began...anyone who wouldve said that Yao would average 2.5 ppg, 4 rpg, and less than 1apg or bpg while turning it over an avg. of 1.5 times would have probably been considered a "Yao hater" not a realist. We all expected...and hoped for more. I am a Rockets fan so of course I hope that he improves A LOT...but I would just be happy at this point if we end up with a decent center. I really doubt he will ever be dominant, and I am afraid that the pick was a bad one. I hope above all to be proven wrong...sooner than later.
Rudy should know now that he does not have the luxury of time especially based on the heightened expectations. It is a crying shame that Rudy has not run plays for Ming, like the two man game, pnr. Get the man so open 15-20 footers instead of trying to get his back to the basket game going. He can set a pick. He did it at every level and can do it now. Rudy has to be blamed. Where are all the plays from the napkin on the plane? His use of Nachbar is another bonehead approach. Defensively, Ming has ways to go but it does not help when Rudy is asking you to switch on a small player, typically guards. There are so many times that Ming is left exposed! I know it is all new so I can excuse some of the one on one shortcomings but to leave him exposed in help defense can only shatter the boy's confidence. The success rate of switching is much less than when you do not switch, so why switch. It is just like the double teaming. We lost the games partly because of this insistence on double teaming.
let me say this and then you may continue your banter. Yao is a young player who has only played against poor competition. If you expect him to be as good as Hakeem his first season, there will be a let down. Hakeem had four years to play against american players in college before he played his first game in the nba. Yao has only had a couple of olympic style exhibitions. it is obvious to me that he will be a domiinant player, but it will take some time. With the lack of centers in the league if he can adapt to the splapping style they are playing on him now, he could possibly look decent by the end of the year, but it is more realistic that he will have to bulk up over the off season and his third season will be where it really begins. peace, i'm out
oh yeah, i forgot something this is not a complete list, just things i noticed kenny thomas only had one point in the same minutes with more touches cato didn't score dunleavy didn't score and only had four rebounds wait a minute, did i say dunleavy, the guy everyone said could walk into the nba and be a good player immediately. Naw!! does that mean you have to learn to step your game up?
If Rudy wants Yao Ming to play the role of Traditional Center then he need to have inside outside plays. Some times it would be good to have Cato on the court at the same time, Cato can give him upto the moment tips on positioning and action. The Club need to have a BIG MANS COACH because Yao Ming needs to learn the NBA fundamentals! At present it looks like he is afraid of mistakes and is lacking in direction!
wow Yetti, do you think Rudy needs to be taught how and when to run an inside out offense? I mean, how do you think he got the title Soup Commander? Compared to Rudy, the glorified Byron Scott of New Jersey would probably be called the Frying Pan Corporal
He was indeed disappointing. Give him a few more games to see what happens. Otherwise just send him back to China.
Let's trade him then....I'd rather see him on a team that will use him and fans with more patience. I agree, the Rockets should have picked up a different rookie or did the Clippers trade. The Rockets wants to make it to the playoffs, so they and fans don't have time for him. In the end, it's all about winning, so let's just trade the guy. It will make everybody happy. Even with Yao out of the picture, Rockets still will have problems with their offense. I hope they can get it corrected.
All I have to say is two words: Tony Parker. Last year this 18-year old foreign rookie (4 years younger than Yao) was given lots of playing time by the Spurs right off the bat. He arguably plays a tougher position (point guard) where he has alot more responsibility for running the offense. Sure, Parker made mistakes, but he showed when given the chance he can deliver and change the entire make-up of that team. Gregg Popovich gives his new players a chance, where Rudy sticks with this same offense oriented around guards creating their own shots, often times unsuccesfully. All I say is that Rudy give Yao more playing time, and instruct his guards to give him the damn ball more often. Then we'll see what Yao can do, like he successfully demonstrated against Toronto last Saturday night. Until that happens, no one should make excuses for Rudy or how tired Yao is, how much of an adjustment period he's going through, or how he doesn't know the plays. When you're the center, you don't have to know the plays as well as a point guard does (again, Tony Parker). You get the ball in the paint, turn and shoot, or attract a double-team and pass to the wide open man. Simple basketball. Give Yao a chance. Once you do, we'll probably see a more balanced offense and more W's.
This isn't a game you're going to win. Let's see the names we can give you in return: Dirk Nowitski - 20.4 mpg. Kwame Brown - 14.3 mpg. Tracy McGrady - 18.4 mpg. Kobe Bryant - 15.5 mpg. Baron Davis - 18.6 mpg. These are all top draft picks who've gone on to do very well in the league, despite the fact they played very little in early seasons. Brown played 14.3 minutes a game last season! And look how dominat he's playing so far this year. And the reason they played relatively little is that *all* of them needed time to mature and develop their game.
First of all, I saw the Spurs last year a lot and at no point did Tony Parker look so pathetic as Yao Ming. Second, if you want Rudy to tell Steve, "look I know you want to win, but I have to play Yao, even though he sucks, so that I don't offend our Chinese fans" the Rockets will alienate their only capable player. And third, if Yao gets 4 fouls in 15 minutes, how much more time can he get before he is DQ-ed? less than 8 minutes...
More playing time for Ming right now could be disasterous. He's already timid out there, and other guys eat his lunch on both ends of the floor. That doesn't help anyone build confidence, and subjecting Ming to more of that could demoralize him, and cause damage to his development. It's better that he be allowed to start slowly, and begin to grasp the game at this new level and speed. He missed out and training camp and definitely hasn't grasped what his duties are on the defensive end of the floor. On the offensive end, opponents regularly slap the ball from his hands or just steal it outright. He doesn't need more playing time yet. He just needs to get more accostomed to the NBA game, and the Rockets system. He also shouldn't fear the foul so much. I'd rather see him play with fire and passion, and foul out after just a few minutes, than stay back or go half speed at opponents in order not to get the foul. Someone should tell him for now that it's ok to foul, as long you are giving it everything you've got and leaving it all out there on the floor. Hawkins did a good job last night of diving for loose balls and going to the floor to get them. Hopefully Yao can become comfortable enough out there to let his passion manifest itself in similar fashion. I don't think any team including San Antonio rewards players who perform poorly with MORE minutes. I'm blaming Yao for everything, but he's clearly not comfortable on the court yet. I wouldn't give him more minutes until he is.
As I see it all Yao needs is to get used to the speed of the NBA players. He is so used to just using his size playing in China. I saw him standind nearly flat footed trying to tip the ball back and forth to himself on a rebound- mabey that works in China but NBA players are so fast and jump around like fleas-boing,boing,boing. they are everywhere. He must be thinking there are 10 guys on the opposing team on the floor all around him. I think he is adapting well considering. Yao did look to me at least like he belonged out there on the floor with the Rocks, which to me is suprising in itself. People have to realize Hakeem played college here and was used to it when he came to the NBA. Yao is smart and hard-working and will get accustomed to the NBA. I am not dissapointed at all with him. I saw him getting push around by much smaller guys that know about positioning. Yao has alot to learn but watch out when he does. I think Rudy is right- just throw him out there to the wolves- it will either make him or break him. You can watch film and sit on the bench but it is not the same as real War expeirience. The only way I can see Yao being a bust is if everyone gives up on him and puts it into his head that he cannot play in the NBA. He is the only player on this team I see as un-tradable as for now anyway , him and mabey Stevie. I still see as as a playoff team if the rest of the guys start playing well. By the time the season is wrapping up if we are going well and Ming is ajusted the rest of the NBA will be trembling in thier Michael Jordan sneakers.
The truth is that having Ming in the rotation right now hurts the team. His defense still has a long way to go and he's not contributing on the boards. Therefore, he should be benched. Yes, you can't learn if you don't play, but this team is trying to win NOW. In addition, Ming could lose all his confidence if he continues to get abused by third string centers ike Jerome James. However, Yao should definitely be put into the game when we blow out a team by 20 (unlikely) or we are blown out by 20. Once he's in the game, we should pass him the ball every time on offense. Garbage time is where rookies like Ming get their NBA experience. It is difficult to practice and learn basic things once the season has started. Ming may have to wait till next summer before he can get his first taste of real NBA training. I think that's what happend with Kwame Brown last year and he seems to be doing fine right now. Patience is the key with Yao. He is a three-year project, but will pay big dividends down the road.
