Three words: Yao Unanimous ROY (OK, maybe ROY counts as three more words, so it's really six). There may be one dufus in Phoenix that actually votes for Amare, but bottom line is, how can there be any question that Yao has had the biggest impact on the league of any rookie since... well... since I don't know who. Did you read about the fact that the only two players at the entire All-Star game that had private press conferences were Yao and Michael Jordan? The playing numbers are going to be a wash. His overall impact on the game is going to put Yao over the top. Not to mention the fact that the Rockets are vastly improved over last year to the point where they are actually even THINKING about the playoffs.
I wouldn't go that far just yet. Amare is a BEAST! It's going to be close and I think Yao might pull it off by a hair.
Ouch. That's got to hurt the "I'm the smart fan and the rest of you are really dumb" profile you were going for. Yao <I>is</I> the Rookie of the Year, but I suspect when it's all said and done, the NBA will take the cheap PR route and hand out multiple copies of the award.
The deciding factor will be who makes the playoffs. Yao had the early momentum then everyone jumped on Amare - "He's propelled the Suns into playoff contention". Now that everyone expects the Suns to make the playoffs, if the Rockets can muscle them out, Yao should win the ROY.
if he keeps playing like he is its YAO, if stoudamire/suns tear up the playoffs, and we dont, its stoudemire, any way both are pimps, why dont we just trade for him, then it wont matter who wins b/c we have em both woohoo!! haha
I counted it 10 times, and I believe that is four words. Five words are something like this: Francis and Yao are co-MVP!
The suns are also vastly improved and last time I checked, they were ahead of us in the playoff race.
I think Amare will get it. And what's the big deal about Yao and MJ having the only prive press conferences out of the All-Star 2003 participants? Yao is only the best chinese basketball player in history and will be in the NBA Hall of Fame in many years to come and also was the #1 pick in the NBA draft? He's big. He's popular now and is becomming a fan-favorite.
Err... Amare has become super-overrated. 1. He doesn't play enough D. 2. He's the 3rd option on his own team. Yao is 1a. Sorry, Amare really doesn't compare. Axeman is right... it should be unanimous.
Yao will get ROY IF the Rockets feed him the ball from here on out like they have the last 2 games. They've done a great job getting Yao involved in the offense.
Does this make you the spelling wizard? Always remember, A Rat In The House May Eat The Ice Cream. Arithmetic.
Stats-wise, both are fairly even although if things continue the way they have in the last few weeks, Yao will be slightly better. This has been beaten to death, but one things that popular stats can't capture... Amare doesn't make veteren ballers think twice about driving to the hoops towards him. Amare doesn't draw double/triple teams nearly as much to free up teammates. Amare doesn't pass nearly as well. Amare doesn't take up so much space. Add to the above what Yao brings to the game as a whole in terms of appeal to new audiences (at home and abroad) and reigniting interest in the league again amongst fans. He's quite literally, single-handedly help bring attendance up not only at Compaq but at arenas across the country. Yao's so popular he made it to the All-Star starting lineup. And he seems like a good guy off the court too. Yup, hands-down. Yao SHOULD be the ROY unless Amare suddenly turns it on big big time and helps the Sun have a deep run in the playoffs.
there shouldn't be any doubt that yao is the unanimous roy now since he crumbled the so-called rookie wall. he has been averaging over 15 pts and grabbing close to 10 rebounds a game.
I haven't really watched any Suns games, so I can't comment on who's a better player. The only thing that makes me believe Yao isn't a "unanimous" choice is that he has a tendency to disappear during games, and then he'll have a streak where he looks unstoppable, and then he disappears ...
I think we might be seeing a little bit of Yao backlash. Nothing pernicious mind you. Other NBA players don't really have it in for the guy, but everywhere you turn, Yao this, Yao that. They can relate to Amare better and certainly Amare's a stud. (Does anyone else smile to think how Amare suffered that "injury" at the Phoenix workout last summer, and so couldn't audition for other lottery teams? Chortle.) But Yao seems to be playing better lately and if the Rockets brass can do their best to keep Yao focused on basketball from now to the end of the season (i.e., they told Yao he'd get a break from the commercials and etc etc), then Yao should have a better chance of finishing strong. I honestly don't know how Yao does it. The stress should just kill him, but he's like a 7'5" Energizer bunny, y'know?
