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ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES
Yao Ming: The Next Asian Superstar?
(Updated
Wednesday, Jan 22, 2025, 06:38:56 AM)
he sweetest moment for Asian men in American sports came on June 26, 2002 at Madison Square Garden. The Houston Rockets had just spent their number one overall draft pick on 7-5 Chinese center Yao Ming over 6-2 Duke guard Jay Williams. The largely black crowd of draft prospects and their contingents booed. They had reason to be displeased. For the past quarter century black athletes had dominated pro basketball and they saw Yao as a subversive force, an alien threat. Even Charles Barkley -- Yao's basketball idol -- sniped at Houston's choice and hinted at bad consequences.
David or Goliath?
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What's wrong with this picture?
In the global sports scene blacks have come to represent all-around athletic prowess. Asian athletes, on the other hand, have been painted as disciplined and skilled but lacking power and size, able to excel only in sports no one cares about. For an Asian to get the top pick in a black-dominated sport was heresy.
To appreciate what Yao represents to Asian American men requires a quick trip down memory lane. And we do mean quick. The lane is short and sparsely populated.
In the beginning there was Sammy Lee, the first Asian American to win Olympic gold. He did it with 10-meter platform diving at the 1948 London games and again in 1952 at the Helsinki games. Not exactly a marquee sport, but inspiring nevertheless at a time when Asian Americans hardly knew what to call themselves.
Then came Michael Chang whose 1989 French Open championship has passed into tennis legend. Cramping and down two sets to Ivan Lendl in the round of 16, the 17-year-old phenom dared to discombobulate the Ice Man with moonballs and an underhanded serve. The ploy worked. The proof that Chang's nerves and speed were real came in the classic 5-set finals victory against Stefan Edberg. But Chang's recent ignomious descent into tennis twilight raises the suspicion that he simply lacks the size and power to stay in the power game.
It wasn't until Hideo Nomo joined the Dodgers in 1995 that an Asian athlete was able to inspire sustained frenzy in one of the big-three sports. Nomo's martian windup and delivery proved so effective that he set Dodgers strikeout records, made the All-Stars and inspired Nomomania.
By 2001 when Ichiro Suzuki joined the Mariners, Asian imports taking Rookie of the Year honors had practically become a Major League tradition. But none had done it with Ichiro's flair or sunglasses. It wasn't enough that he led the game in hitting and basestealing, he seemed determined to make it look easy. Sex appeal had finally come to the image of the Asian male athlete.
But the image still lacked something in many AA minds. Sure, for a leadoff hitter Ichiro hit his share of home runs, but he was known for speed and finesse, not power. Having chafed so long under stereotypes denying them size and strength, AA men longed for a star who could knock those assumptions back into the last millennium.
Eyes turned longingly to football as the obvious arena for the ultimate stereotype smasher -- and saw only Dat Nguyen of the Dallas Cowboys. As a promising linebacker, Nguyen doesn't enjoy the cache of a star offensive back. And at 5-11 and 240 pounds, Nguyen isn't exactly in the 99th percentile in terms of size and power among football players.
Asian American eyes were drawn to basketball by a trio of giants known collectively as "The Great Wall". They were very big for the Chinese national team. First to make his NBA debut was Wang Zhizhi (7-1, 220 pounds) in April 2001. As a center for the Dallas Mavericks he has averaged 5.5 points per 10.6 minutes of playing time per game. A respectable stat for any rookie but disappointing for those who had hoped for an instant Asian star. Then came Mengke Bateer (6-11, 290 pounds) in February of 2002. Despite 15.1 minutes of play per game as a center for the Denver Nuggets, he too disappointed some with an average 5.1 points and 3.6 rebounds.
Enter the Dragon. At a height variously described as 7-5 or 7-6, Yao Ming, 22, is at once the tallest and youngest of the trio. In the past two years his weight shot up from 255 to 295 pound -- and he's still growing. His gifts extend beyond size, however. He moves a foot shorter. Born to a pair of former stars for the Chinese national teams, his court instincts and skills are practically dyed-in-the-wool.
And yet Yao isn't a lock to defy the darker prognostications of his prospects as a Rocket. He was regularly outplayed by Wang Zhizhi when both were playing in China. Even with Yao, Wang and Mengke, the Chinese national team routinely lost to second-tier powers like France and Lithuania. Yao has never gone up against the likes of Shaquille O'Neal. The adjustment to life in the U.S. will be long and difficult. In short, Yao Ming is ideally positioned to become the biggest disappointment in the history of Asians in American sports.
Is Yao Ming the next Asian superstar? Or is he more likely to reinforce the image of Asian men as also-rans in power sports?
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WHAT YOU SAY
[This page is closed to new input. --Ed.]
To All:
The Korean victory over China in the Asian Games was a fluke. China had a seven point lead with 24 seconds left and choked. As we all know in sports, upsets do happen. In any one game, the best team sometimes does not win. If this were a seven games series, China would simply win another four in a row over Korea and take the championships 4-1.
Now, China will simply start another 20-year run in Asia without a loss. With Yao Ming and Batere getting more experience in the NBA, and with rising stars coming through the youth ranks, China will probably not lose again in Asia for decades. Besides, China is no longer focused on Asia, but on challenging the U.S. in basketball, which it may be able to accomplish within 5 to 10 years. Yao is only 21; Wang is only 23; Batere is only 25.
There is huge potential for basketball in China.
Realist
Monday, October 21, 2002 at 02:22:25 (PDT)
[210.0.188.194]
Have any of you guys seen the ad in one of the newest Sports Illustrated with Yao Ming sleeping on the top bunk of a bunk bed with his leg hangin out cuz he's mad tall. It was cool man, a step in the right direction. Speaking of which, how can anybody say that Wang Zhizhi is a good NBA player. He does nothing on defense, on o he runs towards the perimeter and stands there, waiting for somebody to throw it bak out to him... he's seven feet tall! for god sakes go inside and be a man! He's terrible- GO YAO!
Thomas
Sunday, October 20, 2002 at 18:14:04 (PDT)
[129.81.147.133]
"CHina didn't care too much for the basketball portion of the Asian Games. If that was the case, Batere would be scoring 30 points a game and crushing the opponents, since he more than held his own in the WBC. Yao Ming would be pouring in 40 ppg. But no, we don't give a hoot, and neither does coach Wang Fei (who will probably be kicked out after the loss to Corea)."
That's a retarded comment. IF China didn't really care, why were Yao Ming and Menk Bateer even on the team? Could they not have played some other players that they wanted to develop? Yao appeared very upset when the final game was over. He scored 22 points, but he kept letting his man nail shots from the outside uncontested because he didn't want to get drawn outside or he was tired. That is one weak argument on your behalf.
NBAficionado
Sunday, October 20, 2002 at 14:03:31 (PDT)
[209.179.39.96]
Ball Fan:
Kelvin Cato is not someone that I'd call an aging center.
He's still by far one of the league's premier shot-blockers and certainly a contender for most athletic center. However, it is his lack of an offensive game that hinders a possible rise to stardom. It seems unlikely that Cato will ever develop the sort of offensive game that has made Shaquille O'neal into the beast that he is. THat's why Yao Ming is easily projected to surpass him, and possibly take starting position early in the season. Ming has a bona-fide offensive game, with his insane 77% shooting percentage at the WBC.
chinatown
Sunday, October 20, 2002 at 12:52:27 (PDT)
[67.98.161.204]
Chen Hsin-An is taiwanese, even if he did play in the Asian games (which he was suspended from by team Taiwan), he wouldn't be playing for China.
CHina didn't care too much for the basketball portion of the Asian Games. If that was the case, Batere would be scoring 30 points a game and crushing the opponents, since he more than held his own in the WBC. Yao Ming would be pouring in 40 ppg. But no, we don't give a hoot, and neither does coach Wang Fei (who will probably be kicked out after the loss to Corea).
A judgement of character: Labasan is one of those anti-chinese folks. he'd love to see the China man suffer. Of course, that's his business.
chinatown
Saturday, October 19, 2002 at 12:11:26 (PDT)
[67.98.161.118]
nah sean chen did not play in the asian games he was on the practice team with the kings...last i heard he got cut from the team...and he would not play on the chinese team with yao ming because he is on the Taiwanese team
phil the thrill
Saturday, October 19, 2002 at 07:52:47 (PDT)
[169.226.236.30]
I have heard that Yao Ming signed a four-year deal with the Houston Rockets. That's a cool deal for him to start off with.
dsfbcbsijbdax
Friday, October 18, 2002 at 16:52:22 (PDT)
[148.4.22.107]
Asians do not have the speed, strength or athleticism to compete against NBA players.
I watch the China vs USA game and the Chinese were shut down. The guards couldn't keep up with NBA players and NBA players put too much defensive pressure on them.
Ricky T
Friday, October 18, 2002 at 15:31:34 (PDT)
[216.103.86.217]
Here we go again.... another ignorant fool here talking trash.
Labasan,
Man, shut your big mouth please, and don't blad out like an ignorant fool about my boy Yao. "outplayed and overpowered" hmm where you get this? Small korean, lol, where you get this? Just you being very ignorant, thats all.
trash talk
Friday, October 18, 2002 at 12:27:53 (PDT)
[205.232.102.18]
wang will be another bench guy for the clips, just like how he was when he was in dallas. the boy is one-dimensional. he just camps out at the 3point line and never does anything else. he can't block and he can't rebound. he has weak post moves. the only stats he collects are fouls and turnovers. wang zhi zhi is weak.
not that weak guy?
Friday, October 18, 2002 at 10:50:41 (PDT)
[66.107.44.253]
Pet Peeve,
Gessh! That's what I meant, you fool. Obviously, I forgot to mention that it was the preseason only, but thanks though. It's the preseason so I assumed that you and everybody else already knew what I was talking about.
Anyway, Sean Chen got cut along with two or three other players and replaced.
Yao Fan,
I disagree with you that Basketball is a sport that can be carried by one or two players. Put it this way. Imagine a Laker team without Fisher, Horry, and Fox. These guys have scored points in need when Shaq and Kobe couldn't score as much. Have you ever wondered why they weren't traded? Tracy Mcgrady and Andre Miller are considered top players and their team got basically nowhere along with the likes of Elton Brand and the others. These players are really good, but I think they truly know how important it is to have good teammates who can pass, shoot, and rebound.
Just for fun. I honestly think that the Rockets have a good chance of making it to the playoffs. Maybe not win the ring, but somehow fight for it. When healthy, Steve Francis, Glen Rice, Moochie Norris, Cuttino Mobbley, and Yao will make good teammates.They will get more confident knowing that they finally have a young big man who can rebound and shoot for them to replace their aging center, Kelvin Cato. And plus, Glen Rice's championship season with the Lakers will help Yao alot. To put it into simple words, no, Basketball is not a one man team. Steve Francis is a top player, along with Rice and Moochie Norris, but they got nowhere last year because they simply did not have any help in rebounds and shotblocking. That's the main reason why Yao was chosen #1 over Jason Williams. First of all, they already have a stronger and bigger and better point guard by the name of Steve Francis. And people were complaining that he got #1 pick. Come on! Yao is a top player as he develops.
Anyway, Yao is expected to report to Houston Sunday or Monday. He never gets any rest this guy, which maybe bad for him. Rest is as important as practice.
Bateer, on the other hand, got in the league mostly because of his strength and his ability to shoot outside. One commentator said in one of the Nuggets game, "This kid can shoot and he's pretty darn good." Mark Bryant, a self-proclaimed Kobe stopper stated that Bateer and Shaq are the only guys in the league that he can't push around.
Everyone,
The Mavs will no longer match the Clippers offer sheet, therefore, it is only a matter of time til he gets a proper contract worth over 6 million dollars in three years. Not as much as Yao's contract worth over 17.8 million dollars in three years and an option year, but it's a decent amount of money for a second round player.
Eventhough, I think Yao is overally a better player, it will be hard for him to replace the glory of what Wang brought to the Asian community; he is however the first.
It's just like the great sports players of the past. They will never replace the old glory. Wayne Gretzky is a record holder of 61 records and was the man who transformed the sport of Hockey forever and brought the sport to a new level. There might be a player like him someday, but will never replace. He is the first just like Babe Ruth. No matter how many home runs Barry Bonds and the others hit, they will never replace him as the overall legend. Even if someone breaks Joe Demaggio's record of a 56 game hitting streak, no one's going to replace him. It's just like saying that Kobe will be the next Michael Jordan. He might break some of his records, but it does not mean he'll replace him. No way, no how!
Ball Fan
Friday, October 18, 2002 at 09:23:36 (PDT)
[68.96.110.59]
Where did you guys see the clip of the China vs. Korea Asian Games Final? I'd like to check it out myself.
Jake
Friday, October 18, 2002 at 08:55:30 (PDT)
[128.253.21.32]
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