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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.]
Thanks to his 27 pointer game against great centers Duncan and Robinson last night, Yao Ming's NBA career average points per game is now in double digits.
Yao Ming, Da King
Wednesday, December 04, 2002 at 08:29:36 (PST)
[209.232.16.213]
Justin Wong
"There have been tall Koreans in the NBA but they didn't win either. "
Who are these Koreans? When did they play in the NBA and in which teams?
Can you name us a few?
Btw, Yao scored a double-double today with 27 points against the twin towers of the Spurs. Can any basketball player who you consider not very good do that?
Please don't make rude comments about Yao when you don't really understand the basketball game. You have to appreciate how difficult it is for a foreign player learning in his rookie season and still adjusting to the pace of the NBA.
Judging by his recent performance, who says Yao cannot lead the Rocket to a championship in the years to come.
Shi Ming Lee
Wednesday, December 04, 2002 at 05:00:45 (PST)
[144.132.147.24]
Yao showed barkely.
Yao showed bradly
Yao showed the two best centers, tim duncan, and david robinson.
The next thing you haters in here will be asking him to show kung fu, high air flying kick and dunk all at one, on the court. No doubt, he will show that too.
Super-Yao
Wednesday, December 04, 2002 at 04:55:28 (PST)
[162.83.146.45]
I am a Chinese-American born and raised in Houston. I am lucky enough to be able to watch Yao's every game. Yao scored 27 points and 18 rebounds against quality center competition in Tim Duncan and David Robinson. Yao has proven that when he gets the touches, he is a quality basketball player and deserves the #1 overall pick. I am disappointed by the previous post by Justin Wong. Justin is simply looking at stats and not a the overall picture. First of all, if Justin has watched all of Yao's games, he would know that the Rockets are bringing him along slowly into the offense. It's hard to compile stats when he is not the main focus of the team yet. Yao is on a playoff team who's main focus is with Steve Francis and Cuttino Mobley. Stick Yao on a team like the Memphis Grizzlies and I guarantee you Yao has 25 points and 10 boards a night. Justin also says he prefers Kevin Garnett? You compare a rookie to a veteran of the NBA? You got to be kidding me! Kevin Garnett, first of all, has never led a team past the first round of the playoffs against a perennially weak Eastern Conference. Secondly, and more importantly, Garnett's rookies numbers in the first 15 games of his career are comparable to Yao. Garnett did not have to deal with a lack summer practice, no training camp, jetlag, and the pressure of an entire country on him. If you want to cheer a first round loser, go ahead. My money is on Yao for future Rocket championships.
S. Wong
Wednesday, December 04, 2002 at 01:06:47 (PST)
[24.167.65.141]
Yao Ming is the man. Did anyone notice he scored 27 points and 18 rebounds against the San Antonio Spurs? That's quite a performance against the Twin Towers, David Robinson and Tim Duncan. Brother Yao Ming dunked on Tim Duncan right in front of his face! Gyea! Chinese PRIDE! go Yao Ming! You the man!
ChineseMan10
Wednesday, December 04, 2002 at 00:56:12 (PST)
[12.240.4.130]
Wang is not bad from an offensive threat, but he just needs to be playing with more heart and fine tune his defensive skills. Plus, he has the size that many teams are looking for. Shooting out near the perimeter is a waste in his case. Hopefully with Olowakandi on the injured list, we will get to see more playing time for Wang.
And, Yao did good tonight again. 27 pts. against the high caliber Spurs team, ala against the likes of Robinson and Duncan. If you look at all the games in which he scored 20 plus, it is against high tier teams. So, there goes the myth that he can't play nor score. He just needs to be more assertive and not so polite.
Justin,
You don't know what you're talking about. When was the last time we ever heard of a Korean or Korean-American play in the NBA???
Asian basketball
Wednesday, December 04, 2002 at 00:47:59 (PST)
[64.130.235.33]
Man, you don't think he's very good? well, I don't understand how after the recent great performances he displayed anyone can still say that he's no good!! The guy is averaging 9.6 ptg and have a complete game with great instincts and he's 7/4...
and don't forget this is just the start of his NBA career..
(I even have to humiliate myself in front of national television for him!)
You (Justin Wong) must be a hard man to please!
Charles Barkley .. (ofcourse)
Charles Barkley
Wednesday, December 04, 2002 at 00:18:17 (PST)
[205.191.171.239]
The doubter should kiss a donkey ass now.
donkey's dingdong
Tuesday, December 03, 2002 at 21:19:19 (PST)
[162.83.146.45]
Yao dominate, as he helped Houston win against the spurs. And a big win it is, 89 - 75, 14 pts difference all because of Yao. At first, Houston leads, then spurs caught up, and leads and in the final quarter, Houston leads and win. YAO IS THE MAN
Super-Yao
Tuesday, December 03, 2002 at 20:53:05 (PST)
[162.83.146.45]
Yao is fantastic in his last game against the spurs. He has 18 rebounds, even as they doubled team him. Thank, to houston with it's new strategy in giving Yao more touch with the ball.
Way to go Yao, you are the man.
SuperYao
Tuesday, December 03, 2002 at 20:35:08 (PST)
[162.83.146.45]
Yao Ming is the real deal. Against all three 7 footer, tim duncan, kevin willis, and david robinson. He outplayed all of them. Scoring 27 pts, 17 rebound, 3 block and 3 assist, all in 37 mins. Rocket change their strategy by giving more ball to Yao and this equals a winning team.
Yao is a killer
Tuesday, December 03, 2002 at 20:27:24 (PST)
[162.83.146.45]
Ming is the MAN, a career high of 17 rebounds, 3 block and 27 pts against san antonia spurs, Tim Duncan, David Robinson, and Kevin Willis all 7 footer. And sometime, tim duncan and david robinson even double him. And He did alright. In this game, they all pass him the ball. They get him the ball very often. In the last game against the kings, he didn't get the ball very often. And power fower did so bad in that game, and shooting percentage was at all time low. So Houston decided to change the stratgy by giving Yao Ming the ball.
Giving THE BALL TO MING IS A WIN-WIN SITUATION because,
The thing about Ming is that, he is such a great passer, that even if he gets double man on him. He just knows what to do with the ball, he knows where all the players are, and did a good job at finding an open man. That's why you see him with assist. And Moochie Norris, in this game did very well too, 16 pts, 7/9 shooting from the field and partly is because he was being assist by Ming.
GoMing!
Tuesday, December 03, 2002 at 20:13:44 (PST)
[162.83.146.45]
Justin Wong :
Which tall Koreans are you talking about exactly???? Please, let me in on this startling new insight. A Yao centered team can't be any worse than the "avoid passing to yao" team that currently exists. Just take a look at recent commentaries made by the Houston Chronicle.
chinatown
Tuesday, December 03, 2002 at 16:32:45 (PST)
[67.98.161.125]
Okay, here's my take on Wang Zhi Zhi.
It's a fact that in the present, Chinese basketball is vastly inferior to the NBA. The reason that Bateer, Wang and Yao were able to make it to the NBA were their sheer size. Two of the three are undoubtedly highly skilled (Yao and Wang), but with out their size, they would NOT have been drafted into the NBA. NO question.
Now, that brings about the question of why Wang has not performed as well as Yao. Wang, despite being exceptionally big himself at 7-1 and 275pounds, is a standard NBA center at least in terms of physique. His skills are mediocre at best in the NBA. This puts him in the same league as all the 'filler' centers like Adonyl Foyle and Greg Ostertag. If he had the skill of say, David Robinson or even Theo Ratliff, he would be a truly awesome presence down in the post. Unfortuantely despite his natural physical gift (height and weight), he has average skills.
Bateer is a slightly different case. He is ALL BRAWN. At 6-11 he is a typical height for a center in the NBA, but he weighs 290 pounds. He is built like a Mack Truck, and he is able to hold up to other bigbodies in the NBA. However, he is slow and lack offensive talent, which is why he doesn't stand out either.
Now, you have a player that overcomes both Wang's and Bateer's limitations in Yao Ming. At 7-5 he is of exceptional height at any standard in the basketball world. He towers over Shaquille, David Robinson, and Tim Duncan. His height enables him to compensate for the same weaknesses that Wang and Yao have: quickness. If you're 7-5, letting a slasher go by you is not a big deal -- you can stuff him from behind as he rises to the basket. At 6-11 and 7-1, its harder for Bateer and Wang to do that. Yao also weighs close to 300 pounds. He is able to bully his way around the court better than Wang, as Bateer does. But unlike Bateer, he is 6 inches taller.
As added benefits, he is relatively quick and also agile for his size. He can do the little things like intimidating slashers (thus altering shots) and blocking shots. His mere presence in the lane is a defensive achievement, since opponents are more likely to put up lower percentage, mid-to-long range jumpers instead of layup or dunks (just like Shaq). His rebounding and scoring will improve steadily as he learns the little tricks that the NBA training staff know. His body will fill out and he will gain at least an extra 10 pounds in the next few years, with careful weight training and nutrition. His vertical leap will improve by 6-8inches as a result, only adding to his stifling presence under the basket. This man is basically bad news waiting to happen, as far as the opposing teams are concerned.
Yao will do just fine.
Tuesday, December 03, 2002 at 11:36:14 (PST)
[128.253.41.121]
Justin Wong,
Are you kraaaaaazy. There is no KOREAN in the NBA, fool. Only three asian and they are all chinese. Are you an idiot. You must be sleeping. Wake, chickenhead.
krazywongismorelikeit
Tuesday, December 03, 2002 at 09:18:17 (PST)
[162.83.146.45]
-NS PHD EMP
I think that you are looking at Yao Ming in the wrong light, even though I agree with alot of the things you say. I dont think the Yao Ming centered Rockets are gonna be winning any championships. I am Chinese and love wacthing Basketball but I follow the stats though.
I perfer Kevin Garnett. I watch the games with Yao ming only cause he is a Chinese like me. I dont want to cheer him because I dont tink he is very good. There have been tall Koreans in the NBA but they didn't win either.
Justin Wong
jwong@sohu.com
Monday, December 02, 2002 at 16:58:28 (PST)
[211.156.6.108]
Wang buried in the bench,
Wang is a disgrace. I never was his fan. Why did he even rebel against china. A pathetic man he is. What a loser. And I don't know why some people think he is good, I don't think he is at all. I just realized something about basketball. You'll have a lot of player, but not every one of them will be good. From a mass of basket player, in time there will be a great or greatest player of all time. And one day that will happen for the chinese or asian community. In some era, some asian will come up and be the next michael jordan, bound to happen. Look at the black basketball player, out of a mass of million, there are like five or six greatest player of all time.
Good Luck to Yao as he becomes something that asian has never become.
LuckyYao
Monday, December 02, 2002 at 09:01:46 (PST)
[162.83.146.45]
im so proooud of yao ming. We asians are so proud of him.T o yao Good luck.
Yao is the best.
ann
Sunday, December 01, 2002 at 21:13:58 (PST)
[203.177.60.245]
Wang zhu zhu is such a disappointment to the asian community. he's just collecting DNP's every night. maybe he should have signed with denver. this is his 3rd nba season, and he still hasn't shown anything. no game=no playing time. If he can't even beat out sean rooks for 3rd string, then it really shows the coach has zero confidence in him. if he stays at this pace, he may be sent back to china and that would be funny since the chinese government already hates him or thinks he's another rebel. the future does not look good at all for wang.
Wang buried in the bench
Sunday, December 01, 2002 at 16:27:35 (PST)
[63.161.167.211]
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