I don't see this posted anywhere, but if it is, please lock http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=spursparker&prov=st&type=lgns -------------------------------- The interesting quote : I wish Yao's Chinese team(s) could understand this. If a PG younger than Yao can get fatigued by year-round ball, then how can you blame a 7'6" 300+ lbs. monster from doing the same?
Your Mariah Carey quote almost killed me. Reminds me of Britney Spears telling people to just obey GWBush.
what's france going to do to Parker if he opts out? Nothing what would China do if Yao opts out? Smear campaign. yao aint half american either.
the problem isn't really the Olympics or the Asian Games. a dozen games in the summer won't hurt. it actually may help you keep in shape. the problem is Chinese NT's stupid 3 month training camp before the tournament and a series of warm up games in between. it's not impossible for Yao to skip that training camp or at leat part of it now given Yao's superstar status in China.
yeap... exactly... a few games (about 2 weeks worth) per summer isn't the problem... the problem is Yao is forced to participate in training camp & warm-up matches for basically the whole summer.. and guess what.. his schedule is booked until after 2007 (1st break is summer of '07)... and those practices over there, I heard they are brutal... old style, ineffective, but brutal... i don't know how Yao is going to survive this brutal schedule. hopefully the CBA realizes they aren't helping, but hurting him and let him rest more...
curious.... We know that the Olympics are next offseason.. What comes after that?? care to elaborate? and provide links if you dont mind.
LOL....Posters here sound like they read Yao's mind and know that he's FORCED to play for national team. Maybe, just maybe he's proud of representing his own country like most of the athletes in the world.
I'm hoping that after the next Olympics, China will rest its obligations on Yao. It should become readily apparent to China that all the playing that Yao does over there is going to prevent him from becoming the great player that he is capable of becoming. In the end, I'd say the best honor is for Yao to become amongst the elite of the NBA, the best stage for basketball.
I halfway agree that Yao shouldn't have to undergo through the entire practice regimen. On the other hand, consider how much we Rockets fans dislike Yao missing training camp. It's difficult to ask a team to prepare for a tournament without their best player and then expect good execution during games when they haven't practiced together. I mean, that's the excuse we've give recent U.S. "Dream Teams" right? That the players don't get enough time to play together? On top of that, I imagine neither Yao nor his coaches nor his teammates want to make Yao out to be more important than the team by excusing him from practices that everyone else has to participate in. Not that that's a good enough reason to make Yao practice, but you have to give it some currency. I'm not saying there isn't room for compromise. But it's not completely unreasonable to want Yao to be training with his team as much as possible. However, I essentially agree with Johnty that Yao should be able to skip part of the training camp and maybe other drills that don't involve running plays.
maybe he should get a little more proud of being more rested for the team paying him 4.5 million dollars each year.
Forced to practice... i'm sure he want to play for the national team, especially for the olympic. But does he really need those long practices & exhibition matches? I think he can handles the NBA schedule + a few weeks of games each summer. But we are talking about the brutal NBA schedule + practices & exhibition matches + tourn. games all summer long, every summer. I think it will wear him out soon. anyway, this is the schedule for the next few years 2004 Summer - Summer Olympics @ Athens 2005 Summer - Asian Champ (every 2 year) 2006 Summer - Asian Games (every 4 years) or/and World Champ (if they win the Asian Champ in 05) 2007 Summer - Asian Champ 2008 Summer - Summer Olympics @ Beijing ... Actually, i was wrong.. he might not get any rest at all during these summer
How do u prioritize things? I know America is land of the free but playing to represent 1.2 billion Chinese is less important than 4.5 million a season. That's illogical. In soccer, players are required to play for their national team in the world cup when called upon. The Olympics represent the greatest competition for many sports. Unfortuantely US domination has led to basketball being very irrelevant to US players and media. I think all that changed when US lost in the world championships when the stars refuse to play for Dream Team. A 6 th place finish certainly shows that basketball in US is in steep decline. I certainly hope Dream Team lose the Olympics tourney because that will put people's priority in order. Another way to solve this problem is to have the NBA season shortened prior to the Olympics giving the players alot of rest prior to the world cup, u don't need 82 regular season games + Olympics is way to demanding on the players.
How do u prioritize things? I know America is land of the free but playing to represent 1.2 billion Chinese is less important than 4.5 million a season. That's illogical. In soccer, players are required to play for their national team in the world cup when called upon. The Olympics represent the greatest competition for many sports. Unfortuantely US domination has led to basketball being very irrelevant to US players and media. I think all that changed when US lost in the world championships when the stars refuse to play for Dream Team. A 6 th place finish certainly shows that basketball in US is in steep decline. I certainly hope Dream Team lose the Olympics tourney because that will put people's priority in order. Another way to solve this problem is to have the NBA season shortened prior to the Olympics giving the players alot of rest, players don't need 82 regular season games + Olympics.
I don't think the French put up much of a fuss: FRANCE: "We want Parker to play for our national team" SPURS: "No" FRANCE: "OK!"
Some of you guys sound like it's Yao's choice to participate or not, what happened to the agreement between Yao and the CBA of Yao's release on condition of his summer participation?
LOL,how about this China:"We want Yao to play for our national team" ROX:"NO" China:"No way,u promised me"
I don't mind Yao participating in the Olympics, but there's no need for him in the Asian Cup and Asian Games. Much like Asian soccer, many players playing abroad just don't make the trip unless it's important (World Cup/Olympics).
