Shaq without Kobe had strech of stinky games in LA when Lakers only had him and Kobe as two super stars and other scrubs. The mix were very much like us right now. I think they lost to Hawks or some team like that. Duncan without Gino still has very good other players like Parker, Resho etc. On the other hand, this team playing without Yao has yet to be seen. But did we lose to Hornets last year when we still fought for playoff berth? The problem isnt as much as Yao's as opposed to the other players like Magic pointed. Yao's averaging 21pts 11 boards with 46% FPG. Now he certainly needed to do better since we lost.
Roxy I dont think it's much about Yao hating. I think posters here are well past that, or arent we? Yao certainly need to be the man down the strech and he came up small in last 3 games, but he was the man in many other games previous years. Lot of people conviniently forgot about that. What has been changed? Obviously the roster. The other thing is the 3 losses, like Gundy pointed out Rockets went wild. To be more precise, the guards were wild. They let opposing guard score at will and fail to set up offense at the other end. Our guards looked timid out there compared with the opposing let loose guards. That's the difference I think.
Ginobili is not the best player on the Spurs. Duncan is. They lost 3 straight games by a combined total of 29 points, when Duncan went out. Sun Mar 20 at Detroit L 101-110 Mon Mar 21 at New York L 75-88 Wed Mar 23 at Indiana L 93-100 Shaq and Wade lost to the Hornets last year before the Hornets got Chris Paul. http://www.nba.com/games/20050326/MIACHA/recap.html
It has been shown and proven that Yao cannot be on a winning team on his own. It has also been proven that T-Mac cannot be on a winning team on his own, either. That's why they were paired up together. Because combined, they can create a winning team. They are like peanut butter and jelly. On their own they make an ok sandwich, but combined they make a great sandwich. They are like Tom and Jerry, neither can run the show on their own. They are like Iron Fist and Powerman, as neither had much success as their own publication. They are like Ecks and Sever, I presume, because I refuse to shame myself from watching that peice of crap. They are like Francis and Cuttino, without each other there is no such thing as true love. They are like ethyl and cyanacrylate, without each other you can't have super glue. They are like Scalia and Thomas, where one opinion has the vote of two. Like Mac and cheese, neither is a fulfilling meal on their own, but together they can feed a nation. Like boobies, it doesn't quite work if there is only one. Do you get it? have more examples but I need to work.
And during that year, there was no other player who could have been considered "dominant" on the Rox. The reason that Maxwell, Cassell, Hoory, Elie, and Smith were able to do so well and win games on their three point shooting was a direct result of the dominance of Hakeem down low. At the time, the rules didn't allow a man off the ball to be double teamed and Hakeem was especially dominant during the last two minutes of the game. The guards played well during the '93-'94 campaign, but there was nothing approaching "dominant" guard play that year, so saying that big men in general and Hakeem specifically, are "incapable of being clutch" is totally asinine. How exactly does this translate to Hakeem being "incapable of being clutch" down the stretch? That year, he had a dominant guard, but Hakeem was just as clutch as Clyde. Your recall is pretty suspect. Kobe was a rookie when Shaq showed up and neither one did much in the "clutch" (playoffs) until Phil Jackson showed up and installed an offense that runs EVERYTHING through the center (that is how Tex Winter designed the Triangle Offense). I will never argue that Kobe is not clutch, but you arguing that Shaq is not is, again, asinine. A big man does not have to "have the ball in their hands a majority of the time" to be clutch. He has to produce once it IS in his hands, something that bigs have been doing for decades, from Mikan to Wilt to Reed to Hakeem. Guard play is certainly important and championships are not won when there is poor guard play, but you are arguing that big men are incapable of being "clutch" down the stretch, and that argument is silly. Agreed. Yao is not the problem at this point, our biggest problem is very obvious. Our starting SF scored zero points last night and that will not, in the words of Larry the Cable Guy, git er dun.
^^ *points above* WORD edit:: i was referring to the peanut butter and jelly comparison but somebody's computers faster than mine -_-;;
Has it really? You can count on 1.5 hands how many times Yao has had to play an entire game as the main guy. I'm not saying Yao can carry a team or anything.. I just think we still don't know either way. In TMac's absence, I do like one thing about Yao - he is jacking up the shots - averaging 19 FGA in the last three games. When TMac comes back, I hope his FGA doesn't go down. I never want to see a "8/10 FG/FGA" in his stat line again.
How the hell are you supposed to read that article? It's sideways. is espn so dumb that they don't know how to let you flip the stupid article?
Even had we won last night, I would still be disappointed. I like Anderson's aggressiveness though his shot selection was poor... even some of the ones he made. I dislike Swifts decision making. Stro, let the game come to you. Everytime you forced the action, it was bad almost everytime. Alston, when driving, needs to shoot more. Yao lost gas in the last quarter. Wesley shot is busted... however, I love his effort. Even with all this, I think the sky isn't exactly falling... have patience people... have patience... Stuart
Dominant and clutch are two different things. Yao was dominant last night, but not clutch. Big men, in general, ARE incapable of being clutch on their own. Even before the zone defense was legalized, the reason Hakeem was able to score and be efficient in the 4th quarters of those games is precisely because the guards were capable of hitting outside shots. Had they not been, the defense would have sagged off them, making it harder to get Hakeem the ball in good position, and even when he did, they would have double and tripled teamed him only to have the guards subsequently miss open 3s. Guards have the ball in their hands most of the time, and even more so down the stretch of ball games, as turnovers become that much more important. It's not a coincidence that in the 2 year championship run there is one defining play of a big man winning the game for the Rockets, but many of guards being forced to be clutch (Mario Elie, Kenny Smith, Sam Cassel, Robert Horry). Did Hakeem get them those shots, and indirectly play clutch...well, yes. But had they missed them, we may still be stuck with no Rockets championships and Hakeem would be remembered with the Charles Barkley's and Karl Malone's of the world...dominant, but not clutch. The fact of the matter is instead of going to Hakeem in a post-up they went to Clyde on a drive to the lane. It is just easier for a guard/ballhandler to create with little time on the clock. Again, it's no coincidence that when you think of clutch players in the history of the game, you think of SG/SF types...ballhandlers. Jordan, Kobe, Miller, Bird, Magic, T-Mac. It doesn't mean Shaq was just as important, and important down the stretch, but no, he was not as clutch as Kobe, imo. Shaq is certainly clutch, but Shaq's level of clutchness is way below Kobe's. I can think of dozens of times Kobe has sunk shots in the final minutes and seconds of ball-games. Open shots, difficult shots, moving shots, fade-away shots. The guy is nails. Shaq, on the other hand, I really only have 1 vivid memory, and that is an important dunk, off an alley-oop, from Kobe, against Portland. I imagine there are more, but I can't think of many. I'm not trying to argue that Shaq was less important than Kobe, but I am arguing that in close games, down the stretch, Kobe was the one making plays. I'm not arguing a big man can't be clutch. I'm arguing he's much less likely, especially without other decent talent around him. Shaq is certainly clutch. Tim Duncan has been a fairly clutch player throughout his career. But overall, when you think of clutch, you don't think of Kareem, Hakeem, Ewing, Robinson, etc. Here's some interesting stats from 82games.com (which may be stupid stats, but nonetheless. http://www.82games.com/clutchplay3.htm http://www.82games.com/clutchplay2.htm Obviously, a big man has more ability to be a clutch defender and rebounder than a guard, just as a guard/ballhandler, is more likely going to take/make/miss a clutch shot. Agreed. Starting SF and entire guard-play overall.
I accept that Its not all Yao's fault, every one has been playing like trash. When i watched that game, teh gaurds wanted to pass it to Yao, but he never was able to box out Mourning for a good spot in the post during the 4th quarter. About the points, Yao plays big minutes in the 4th quarter, its not like all his minutes are evenly spread. Yao has throughout his career been absent for us in the 4th quarter. I amnt blaming him, but thats the truth.
Yao did fine last nite- I was proud of his efforts. I am not impressed with Ryan Bowen or David Wesley. Dogged at chasing balls though Mr. Bowen may be -no one fears his shot on the other team. Wesley cannot defend any but the slowest guards. This was a team loss -not Yao's fault, certainly not Alston, Anderson or Luther H -all put out great effort.
he sounds liek one of those people who watches the highlights, listens to the postgame analysis from talking heads like Barkley, and then decides what his opinion should be based on the amount of Yao bashing in RealGm and ESPN combined.
Yall are saying that yao did good that game. I know he did good, but he did jack in the fourth quarter, incase you didnt watch the game. I said 4th quarter. He couldnt get open in the 4th quarter. He is a terrible clutch player.
Yao played with efforts in the fourth quarter. I had the game recorded. Yao had many established positions gone to waste because they didn't pass inside. There were two plays in which Yao established position multiple times, moving laterally from one side of the court to another. Still no ball. Aside from that, it's the fronting that made Yao hard to get the ball. Something you can't just blame on him. The coach, guards and Yao need to work on it together.
I can't blame Yao for the loss. Hell, he looked damn good.... he looks better this season than he ever has. If he can maintain this level of play all year, we get Tracy back (please god, soon!!), and the guards find their shot (and they could have found Yao last night more often than they did), we will have a great season. We've been exposed at the 3. Besides McGrady, what have we got? Some guards masquerading as 3's? Bowen is fine for 10 minute situational play, but that's it. We can cover the lack of a backup with Anderson and Sura, when he comes back, and give Tracy a breather, but if he ever misses time like he is now, then we're going to have the same problem. I know it's impossible to have the depth you'd like to have at all positions. That's just something you dream of, but we have to pick up someone to give us something behind McGrady besides what we've got. I know it's early, but these games have shown, at the very least, that at the backup 3 we are EXPOSED. (golly, I feel like I pulled a Trader_J!)
Just luck, I guess. Just wanted to add that I'm usually not one to complain that much about Yao not getting the ball in the post when he has position... not because it doesn't happen, but because that charge is so frequently overblown, imo. Last night, however, in the 4th he was waving his arms, ready for the pass, and the guards were passing to someone else. It was like they thought they could get a better feed from another player, or had been told to pass the ball so much that they started being stupid about it. Maybe they were tired, I don't know, but with the kind of game Yao was having, I can tell you I was yelling at the TV. (I do that a lot, lol!) The game wasn't lost by Yao. Sure, he missed free throws he normally makes, but so did everyone else. He didn't catch some passes that he should have, but not enough to be that big a deal. I've been very impressed with his play so far, but I guess I said that already!
