This post comes from a Yao Ming site. Very informative. There are no more games scheduled until the Asian championship. Currently, Yao is practicing with the Chinese NT team everyday with Sundays off. Sep 23-Oct 3: The 22nd Asian Championship. Yao said he'll come back to the states right after.
Dang, Shaq hired a marine to train him and he had an easier schedule than this. I'm telling you, a person of his size should not be put through such a rigorous lifestyle, he needs rest.
I guess he can be back by Oct. 5, and fully participate in anything by Oct. 7 at the most. I believe there's a preseason game on the 8th, so he should be good to at least be on the bench for that one.
Does anybody else think it makes it much harder for JVG to sell the idea of "Yao is the future of the team" to the players when they have to pretend that he's there all of training camp?
As long as he is available for the Oct. 12 game at Toyota Center. That is the preseason opener in Toyota Center. I think thats the clutch city classic right?
sure it is. and Yao seems to be training, practicing, and playing just as much as he did last summer so when he shows up late for training camp like a dead log it'll be interesting to see if the coaches and teammates cover up for him like they day last year with the 'oh he's tired, he's been playing and training yr round' excuses.
First game is Oct 7th, and the second is Oct 8th. Back to backs against Seattle and Portland. Yao Ming will most likely arrive on the 5th, but I believe it's a great idea if he were to stay back home and skip the back to back road trip. He could make it, but it would be really great if he rested and did nothing from the day he arrives, which is the 5th, all the way to October 10th and plays Seattle at home. 5 days of pure rest would do him a LOT of good, and it would get him mentally prepared. By doing this, he would STILL have 6 preseason games under his belt to learn the new system, and get used to the new coach, while also being free of any pressure to win. I'm very optimistic about the situation. Five days of rest, followed by 6 preseason games is absolutely amazing for him.
Corresponding events for the ClutchCity.net BBS: April 26 - May 11 - Posters fear Yao's safety on airplane to China. - Posters fear Yao has SARS. - Posters see Steve Francis give money during Yao's telethon; consider it selfish grandstanding. May 12 - May 19 - Fear sweeps BBS that Chinese National Team will restrict Yao to raw fish and rice while training for Asian Games. - Yao given clean bill of health. Posters fear Chinese government conspiracy. - No news about Francis clear indication he is getting fat and out of shape and cares little about winning or being a leader. - Cato criticized (ongoing activity) May 19 - June 20 - Rockets hire Jeff Van Gundy; posters fear he will grab Yao Ming by the ankles during games injuring him. - Yao plays scrimmages with Chinese team and, according to reports, sleeps only 30 minutes each night hanging upside down inside the basement of the Chinese training facility. - Yao signs endorsement deal with Pepsi - sues Coke. Fans march to ship channel and dump cases of Coke into the water turning it brow...er...nevermind. - Francis reportedly begins record label. Name of label and outside business interests demonstrate clearly to posters that Francis has now lost all will to play the game of basketball and will soon retire after reporting a weight gain of 175 pounds. June 21 - June 30 - Rockets draft unknown player in the second round. Despite the insistance of the team and league sources that he will play in Europe at least one year, possibly two, posters are convinced that he will be an all star in his first year and, eventually, one of the best power forwards in league history...unless he doesn't compliment Yao's game, in which case he sucks and will wither into obscurity. July - Yao receives paper cut. Posters speculate this is Chinese propoganda and his skull was actually crushed by a marauding band of gypsies outside his hotel. - Reports say Yao has hypertension. Posters speculate he actually suffered a heart attack during his beating from the gypsies and now requires open heart surgery. - Yao is interviewed and says he is fine. Posters suggest this is the "robot Yao" and that the real Yao is being held in a secret underground labyrinth where he is fed chicken feed and table scraps. August - Pictures of Yao surface clearly showing he has gained weight...or lost weight. I forget. Either way, posters upset. - Steve Francis appears on local talk radio. His appearance convinces posters he should be traded because he hates Yao and basketball. Septeber - Training Camp - Posters create a continuous cycle of ridiculous posts and speculate on each second of Yao's day including his plane flight where they fear a hijacking. - Yao returns after missing one week of training camp. Clearly he is behind and will never catch up and the team hates him for not being there. Just another six months in the life of the BBS.
Jeff, great piece but I'm still not sure of one thing. Was that intended as a serious piece or a comical one? Sadly enough it's just as true to life as it is funny!
You are absolutely right. I mentioned this long time ago Rox can't build the team around Yao because he can't concentrate 100% on the team. I think JVG eventually will ask Yao to shoulder the interior defense and leave the offense to Steve.
I'd like to hear more about this "Robot Yao"...sounds like a good idea. It won't get tired, and if it hurts itself, then it can be fixed in a day or two. Plus, you can program it any way you want... set variable=feetfrombasket IF feetfrombasket<=2 THEN dunk
