I'm not writing this new thread due to Yao's terrific performance against the Blazers tonight, but Yao has been criticized way to much this season. Yes it is frustrating to see Yao get into way to much foul trouble however its only his third season and he is still learning. He is averaging 30 MPG, yet he can get 18 ppg and about 9 boards. Once Yao's fouls go down and averages about 35 minutes a game he can be as good as Amare and Garnett. If you compare Yao's first 3 years to Garnetts you can see that they are very similar: G Min FG RB Bk PPG 02-03 Hou 82 29.0 .498 8.2 1.8 13.5 03-04 Hou 82 32.8 .522 9.0 1.9 17.5 04-05 Hou 70 30.7 .545 8.2 1.9 18.1 (Ming) 95-96 Min 80 28.7 .491 6.3 1.6 10.4 96-97 Min 77 38.9 .499 8.1 2.1 17.0 97-98 Min 82 39.3 .491 9.6 1.8 18.5 (Garnett) Yao's stats have been increasing throughout his first 3 years, they are bound to go up to how everyone expects them to be. My point is I believe Yao is doing great as of now, he just needs to keep his fouls down. The Rockets have a good record and are one the hottest teams in the NBA and yet there are people still complaining about something. The Rockets defense would not be this good if Yao's presence wasn't there.
If you compare the 3rd year per min stats, Yao actually has better numbers than Garnett. He gets 1.4 rbs less, about the same number of blocks and 0.4 pts less by playing almost 9 mins less per game. But the inability to stay on court is also the knock on Yao.
These clueless pundits just wanna always be able to compare somebody to Shaq. Yao making it to the league and being the 1st international born #1 pick gave them the opportunity to put him in the spotlight. He's played well, but obviously not on Shaq's level though so in their eyes he's always going to be a "disappointment" since he's not averaging 25+ PPG and 10+ RPG and winning championships (well, not yet at least ). Bogut will experience the same thing, on a lesser scale though. Bogut will be a fine player but not on Shaq's level either. So who knows, perhaps he's the next big "bust" to grace the league??
Those comparisons are BS. Garnett was much younger when he started. Lets compare them at age 24. YR ...TM. G. GS. MIN . FG . FG%.... 3P ....3P% . FT ... FT% . STL BLK TO PF DQ OFF DEF TOT AST PTS KG 00-01 Min 81 81 39.5 8.7-18.2 .477 0.2-0.8 .288 4.4-5.8 .764 1.4 1.8 2.8 2.5 0.0 2.7 8.7 11.4 5.0 22.0 Yao 04-05 Hou 70 70 30.7 6.7-12.2 .545 0.0-0.0 .000 4.8-6.1 .774 0.4 1.9 2.5 3.7 0.1 2.5 5.7 8.2 0.8 18.1 Not so close.
thats BS as well.. you can't compare by age.. by 24, Garnett was playing a number of yers in the NBA while it's just the first year for Yao.. but if you want to, then compare them at 22 or 23 with Yao's stats while he was still playing with Shanghai Sharks..
Yao needs respect from his fans. those are the guys who are the most distraught with him most of the time and who after every game of his that does not meet their stat-box standards, blame his teammates, the coach, the system, or whatever. rockets fans, for the most part, they're ok with where Yao's at and the pace at which he is going and where he is heading.
yeah, as a guy who expected him to be a bust, or a 13 and 8 guy after 3 years, his numbers in the third year are just fine by me. Do I think he can do better? Of course I do, but he's just not wired like that yet, and I'll take 18 and 8 from him for now.
I don't understand why people always bring age to the table and fail to mention the fact that Yao had to move away from his home and acclimate himself to a completely different culture. I'd say that's every bit as daunting as being 18 years old and having to adjust yourself to a professional life. If you look at Garnett's stats, he never really had a "breakout" year either. He just improved incrementally every year until reaching superstar status. Granted, I don't think Yao will ever reach Garnett's level, but he's still improving. I, for one, am satisfied with his progress.
As long as Yao continues to improve each year, then I am fine. At 18/8 and still improving...then I think the sky is NOT falling. Yao has showed some tremendous signs of improvement this season. If he can learn how to get his fouls down, he'll be a beast.
what stands out to me is the fact that KG was playing about 8 minutes more per game than yao and still the numbers are similar. if only yao could stay on the floor! he has fouled out more times than anyone this season. since yao has mirrored KG's numbers thus far, here are his 4th year stats: G.47 MIN. 37.9 FG%. .460 REB. 10.4 BLK. 1.7 PTS. 20.8 yao would need to improve by 2 points and 2 rebounds per game to match these numbers. i think he can do it if he plays 36 minutes per game.
Yao's biggest problem is consistency. He needs to bring it every night. If he cuts down the number of his 8 pts, 3 rebounds games, he'll be fine. Right now he just can't do that due to foul trouble and lack of stamina/concentration.
Let's compare them by height. Since KG is 6" shorter, he's 93% of Yao's height. so let's reduce Yao's numbers by 93% and compare them. Whatever. I think the most reasonable comparison is by years in the league.
Now we compare Yao to KG instead of Shaq? I thought KG has never spent time playing at 5, never played behind another star, either?
Yao needs to earn respect. What do people criticize? That he doesn't get enough rebounds: I agree with this. That he doesn't bring a high energy level to every game: I agree with this. That he doesn't block nearly enough shots for a 7'6 player: I agree with this. That strong, physical players can outmuscle him in the paint: I agree with this. That he commits stupid fouls way too often: I agree with this. That he settles for fadeaway jumpers when he could bring it inside for a higher percentage shot: I agree with this. The fact of the matter is, Yao is a good player who has A LOT of work to do if he ever wants to become a championship-level centerpiece.
That's the point. It's not valid to compare by age, by first three years, by whatever, because Yao's experience has been significantly different than KG's. You can't reasonably infer anything Yao will do from what KG did.
The KG comparisons are simply a frame of reference...nothing more. Everybody thinks KG is the best on earth and so many people bash Yao. So comparing KG's #'s with Yao just lets you know that Yao isn't doing as poorly as many would have you believe. Just be patient and relax and lets see what happens. Yao is still improving.
Again, I disagree. I don't think the KG comparison is a valid frame of reference. It doesn't let you know anything.
