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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 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 in 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.]
> At WORST, he'll become a Rik Smits
> type of player.
No, at WORST, he'll be chinese Bradley. but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt because Bradley can't shoot jumpers. But overall, Ming's mere outside game is far from enough to be a presence in the paint. He's been playing only short and weak opponents all his life. You seriously believe Shaq or Duncan or even a whack player like Ostertag would give up the block to a tall skinny guy?
> I watched many minutes of Ming video
> clips and two full games on the
> Internet. I have also read many
> reports of Ming from scouts and GMs.
I have seen all the clips available, and I would say his offensive game is 'soft'. A 7'5" man's shooting abilities can only carry him so far if he can't do anything else close to the basket. He doesn't take it strong enough. When I see him play, I see a guy that's not aggressive enough. I don't like watching him shoot layups, but that's what he does. WHEN YOU ARE 7-5, JAM THE M-------ER IN EVERYTIME. Shaq would have a field day with him when they meet in mid November.
> He plays like a 4 on Offense and he's
> a 5 on Defense.
That's what they said about Wang Zhi Zhi. Granted, Wang does have some offensive abilities, but in the NBA, he can't guard a trash can. The competition in China is just so weak that most of these players never learn to play any fundamental D. Ming loses a lot of advantage becuase his wingspan is not that great (it's less than his height), and he has a credit card length vertical leap. Just because he's tall, it doesn't automatically mean he can play D.
Look at Bradley. He gets dunked on the regular by much smaller dudes with hops, and Bradley's 7'7".
I can see the same with Ming because he's too soft. He should utililize his height and be more authoritative on the court, pound around inside the paint. The big man shouldn't be camping out 15-20 feet away. It's good he has a repetoire for range, but he needs to play some inside power game, damn it! I want to see him post up, spin, or drop step and dunk. non of that pansy game that's a waste of height.
> There is no question about his
> Offensive skills.
The defensive pressure that he will face in the NBA is many times what the CBA had ever offer. Ask Wang. Ask Bateere. Heck, even Bateere was an offensive threat in China, but look what he's doing in Denver: fouling out every other game and scoring 4-5 points.
> This guy often shoots the ball
> without jumping and no one can guard
> that(playing with opposing teams'
> centers who are 6'11" to 7'3" tall).
Dude. We're in the age where 6'8" guards are common and 7'0" small forwards are on the same floor. This isn't 1950 anymore. EVERY TEAM IN THE LEAGUE HAS A 7 FOOT CENTER OR 3. and most of them start. Being 7 foot center is no big deal, and they all got longer wingspans than Ming. And like I said, Ming can't jump. and he's slow on his moves. Check out his spin move from one of your video highlight clips. Damn, it's like Sloooooooooooooow-motion. That kind of move might work on a stoned defender in China, but nobody's going to let him go anywhere with that in the league. The pace of the NBA is so much faster than what he's ever experienced in his life.
> He has a sweet hook shot which is
> unstoppable within 10 feet.
Ask Oregon Christenson (sp?), who easily blocked Ming's soft attempts to the basket.
> He is really not a perimeter player
> and definitely a true center.
He thinks he's steve kerr. That's not enough. If he had Duncan's game with that height, ahhh, then that would be something. but no, he doesn't have the athletic ability nor the aggressive mentality. Might take time, but as of right now, he's faaaaaaaaaaaar from what i expect from a #1 pick. Height is not enough in the NBA if you don't have the polished skills.
> Although he is a high post player, he
> makes most of his baskets in the 2-10
> feet range.
Yeah, against dudes that are 6'7" or 6'9". But in the league, 7'1" KG would fly out of nowhere to swat his shot.
> He averaged about 21 points 13 rebs.
> blks in 27 minutes with a approximate
> 75%FG in the recent 4 country
> tournament with Italy, Yugoslavia,
> and Austrailia.
Yugoslavia had like a B or C class team. no Peja, no Vlade. just a bunch of no nmaes. And who did Austrailia have? Chris Antsey? oh yeaah, he's tough!
> The only problem I see is that he'll
> have trouble guarding guys one-on-
> one; which may lead to foul trouble.
OK, GOOD! FINALLY, you concede to some of his weakness. YES, I'm sure he will have a lot of trouble in that. Just like Mengke in Denver or Wang in Dallas/Golden State or whatever, Yao is going to have an extremely difficult time adjusting to the pace of the players over here. Even aging centers here are quicker than most guards in China. I just hope Yao is getting good conditioning now because if he doesn't, he'll get tired by the 2nd quarter, which would make him seem even less effective later in the game.
> But when he does get backed down in
> the paint, he'll have weak-side help
> from his team-mates like how it is
> with the current NBA play.
He'd be collapsed. That's what it's going to happen. If he were strong and tough, he'll muscle in anyway like shaq, but I just don't see that. He'll probably make the pass, but that's alright because Houtson got some shooters on the squard.
> I say he'll be an impact player from
> the first year on.
I HIGHLY DISAGREE. Don't get me wrong. I want the best for him, but let's be realistic here and stop using cultural blood as the reason to support your views. When he arrives, he's going to have a hellavua time adjusting to everything: the defense, the power, the rules, the intensity, the speed. All are greater in NBA by significant margins. I just hope the Rockets are wise and develop him gradually. Or else he'd be exposed as the biggest bust since Kwame Brown. Hell no, he's not going to be effective in his first year. He has too much to learn. Look at Wang, the guy that kicked Ming's ass for years in China. Wang has already been playing the the NBA for 2 years, and he still can't break the starting lineup.
> I'll go on to say that he'll be an
> all-star and possibly the most
> dominant center some years down the
> road.
At BEST, he'd be a Rik Smits, and I would hardly consider him to be the most dominant center. Yea, a Rik Smits is alright, but I'd rather have Shaq, or a Hakeem, or a Jabbar.
> Basketball aside, he seems to be a
> very intelligent person with a good
> sense of humor (I've read a lot of
> his quotes
Who cares? It's hoops. Nobody cares if you are smart or articulate. Moses Malone and Shaq weren't exactly scholars, but what coach would care about stuff like that?
I'm not hating, but just stating my true opinions. It's good to see an Asian making it, but let's not get carried away with our expectations!!!!!!!!!!!!
peace
Dan Wang
Monday, July 22, 2002 at 09:13:32 (PDT)
I would say give Yao Ming some time to adjust himself here in this country. He cannot be the hero for the Houston Rockets in winning as many games overnight. Let's just see what happens to him.
dsfbcbsijbdax
Monday, July 22, 2002 at 05:45:58 (PDT)
Here's an article I wrote a while back that may be informative.
Yao Ming: Hero or hype?
By Chia-Chi Li
By now everyone has probably heard something about the mysterious center from China. Standing at a towering 7’5 and commanding excellent ball handling and shooting skills for a man his size, Yao Ming is predicted to emerge as the number one draft pick. But accompanying the glowing reviews and claims of his nascient dynasty are concerns about his upper body strength and ability to adapt to the more physical and aggressive American style of basketball.
The NBA diviners are themselves divided on whether he will dominate or be dominated.
The truth lies somewhere inbetween. I watched Yao play live against the United States’ best and undefeated college players at the 2001 Universiades. Among his opponents were Jay Williams and many of his peers in the draft. The result? In the last 4 seconds China was ahead 83-82 with the ball in US possession. The chants of “U-S-A, U-S-A” by the American contingent were drowned out by chants of “Zhongguo dui! Zhongguo dui!” (Team China) and paired with oversized flag waving fervor reminscent of the Red Guards of the Cultural Revolution.
At this point I turned to my Mainland Chinese friend and said, “Basketball to America is like ping-pong to the Chinese. No one beats Chinese at ping-pong. No one beats the US at basketball. The US teams are especially good at playing in the last few seconds.” Immediately the US moved the ball down the court and into the paint. The US shoots; a miss, but offensive rebound right under the hoop with nearly perfect position. At this point I gave up hope. “It’s over,” I whispered. The US player shoots a textbook fade away in the final second of the game.
But then a miracle happened. From nowhere a long, long arm appears, the fingers wrap around the edges of the ball, and push it down and aside. The majority Chinese audience goes insane. If the roof at Qinghua University Stadium were not bolted down it would have been blown away by sheer volume of the cheers alone. The American team is handed their first lost ever, the Chinese celebrate in fine style, and Chinese basketball ascends another degree, via a vicious “Not in my house” Yao Ming stuff.
Will Yao become a huge player in the US? Will Shaq bump him around like a rag doll? Will he be able to adapt? I really don’t know. The man has legit skills and people who know the game much better are betting on him. But for me, and other Asian Americans, only one impression surfaces: Michael Chang Who?
C. Li
divinity@u.washington.edu
Monday, July 22, 2002 at 01:31:31 (PDT)
Also,
It'd be nice for a few 6 foot guards to make it in the NBA too, we need well rounded reprsentation. Imagine an NBA team made up of mostly Asian players.
It'd suck if Asians ended up getting caught in the trap that we only come in 1 size and can only play 1 position.
huu76
Sunday, July 21, 2002 at 23:09:03 (PDT)
I hope Yao does turn out to be a good player, it'll help elminate the stereotype that we're only good at girlie sports.
Chalupa-Man (the guy who plays for the Mavericks, is it Wang?) has done a decent job so far with the few minutes he got.
Fans of baseball and soccer have had to stand up and take notice of Asians in those sports thanks to players from the last few years. The NBA will soon have to do the same.
huu76
Sunday, July 21, 2002 at 22:32:07 (PDT)
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