YaoMingMania.com

100% dedicated to Yao Ming's life in the NBA.

Yao vs. Wizards - 11/22/02

Michael Jordan is left defenseless in the paint against Yao on November 22nd against the Rockets.

as of 11/23/02

No fluke

Mr. Consistency had another great evening, this time as a starter for the first time in his Rocket career. Coach Rudy T. really had no choice BUT to start him after his magnificent performance the previous night against the Mavericks. If he hadn't, everyone would have asked, "Are you crazy?" On Friday night against Michael Jordan and the Washington Wizards, Yao scored 18 points on 7 of 11 shots, went 4-4 from the free throw line, had 8 rebounds and 4 blocks to help pace the Rockets to a 93-86 victory. Yao now officially leads the NBA in field goal percentage at 70.5%.

It's clear that over the past few days since Yao scored 20 against the Lakers (Sunday), and 30 against the Mavericks (Thursday), he has changed the complexion of the NBA. The league has a new Force who, for many so-called NBA experts, came out of nowhere. It's ironic, but before the game the Washington TV commentators had nothing but great things to say about Yao, which included statements like, "Yao Ming has been the talk of the NBA," and, "What kind of strategy do you employ on Yao Ming?" Funny, but just a few days ago many sports broadcasters could not digest the thought of making statements like those. We don't know what these particular D.C. guys have said in the past, but if they are like other so-called 'NBA experts,' they're all jumping on the bandwagon. Give it time, though. Usually after they jump on the bandwagon and build up new stars, they quickly start tearing them down. It gives them something to talk about.

Mr. Clutch, too?

The thing that continued to amaze us through the Wizard game is how automatic Yao is with his outside shots. He's doesn't appear to be one of those players who would think after hitting a bunch of shots in a row, "I'm due to miss one." It seems like he feels confident he's going to make every shot. As we stated earlier this summer, when we heard about Yao shooting 21 for 21 in a Chinese game, we said we didn't care if you're playing a YMCA team, that's very special. We think it may have something to do with the regimen and repetition the Chinese players endure in their practices compared to a lot of American players. With this special talent, we predict Yao will be the "go-to" man when the Rockets need a bucket in the waning seconds of a tight ballgame. When his career is said and done, he may have more game winning shots than any other player in history (including Jordan) given his accuracy and height, which allows him to shoot over most defenses.

The other thing that stood out in this game was the variety of shots Yao made. Not just dunks, but right-handed shots, left-handed shots, the Sky Hook, you name it. Just read the "Detailed Yao Analysis" below to get a good feel for how multi-talented he is. Without a doubt, he is one of the most skilled rookies we have seen play in the NBA in a long time. Remember, when Jordan entered the league he really didn't have that great of a jump shot, but he worked on it. Yao is already ahead of Jordan if you compare both at the same stages in the early parts of their NBA careers.

In closing, we have one last prediction: The Rookie All-Star game is a lock for Yao. And at this rate, he could be playing--deservedly--in the big show--All-Star Sunday.

Yao helps out Eddie Griffin in denying Jerry Stackhouse.

Detailed Yao analysis

1st quarter
12:00		Yao starts his first game as a Rocket, and of course he wins the opening tip.
11:01		Joaquin Hawkins throws a soft pass to Yao in the high-post, on the left side, outside of the lane with his back facing the basket. He quickly turns toward the hoop, jumps high, shoots at the apex, and swishes it! Rockets lead 2-0.
10:44		Yao alters a shot in the lane of a penetrating Wizard guard. Yao won't get credit for it on the score sheet, but he'll get more respect in the paint.
10:15	Assist	Yao gets the ball in about the same spot as 46 seconds ago--on the right side on the Rockets logo with his back facing the basket. He fakes left, and then takes a step right toward the baseline. The Wizard guarding him, 7-footer Brendan Haywood, has his arms raised to try to fluster Yao. But because Yao is so tall, he is able to throw a bullet pass right over Haywood's oustretched arms to a cutting Juaquin Hawkins, and Hawk scores on a reverse layup! We've all heard how great of a passer Yao is, and he shows it on this play! We're sure this is the first of many to come. The Rockets lead 5-0.
:41	Free Throws	From the same spot, Yao changes what he does. This time, he dribbles to his left into the lane (the first time we've seen him do this from that spot), stops, turns and shoots a jumper about 3 feet inside the free throw line. He misses, but he's fouled. Yao hits both free throws, and the Rockets lead 12-6. One thing we're starting to appreciate with Yao: he never seems to do the same thing twice in a row. He's extremely smart by keeping the defense guessing.
6:33		Same spot again: Yao does a quick turnaround jumper and actually misses! He's human! The rebound goes to the Wizards.
6:02	Hustle rebound!	From the opposite side of the rim where a Rocket missed shot is headed, Yao runs down the baseline to come out of nowhere, grabs the rebound in mid-air, and before crashing to the floor passes it off to another Rocket (see the first photo above the shot chart on the left). Our guy looked like Dennis Rodman on this rebound! Don't tell me he's going to hustle for every loose ball, too! The crowd roared its appreciation for Yao's effort. Unfortunately, Eddie Griffin misses a 3-point attempt, and the Wizards grab the rebound.
4:37		On the defensive end, Jerry Stackhouse drives from the right baseline to go up for a dunk or layup, with Yao under the basket. It looks like Stack wants to get on ESPN Sportscenter with a highlight reel jam over our man. NYET! Rejected! Yao times it perfectly and pins the ball against the glass, and the Rockets start a break the other way! The crowd erupts! Yeah, this play will be on Sportscenter tonight Stack--but for the wrong reason!
4:23		On the ensuing possession, Yao gets the ball in his favorite spot (should we keep repeating it, or is it obvious enough?). He then drives a little closer to the basket by going baseline. Now just outside the paint, he turns back around and shoots a fallaway jumper (a la Jordan) over Christian Laettner. Two! Rockets lead 16-15. Yao now has 6 points.
3:12		On what appears to be a set play out of a timeout, Eddie Griffin gets the ball in the right hand corner. Yao, standing at the top of the key, sees a wide open lane to the basket. Yao's and Griffin's eyes connect, and Eddie alley-oops the ball about a foot from the rim, where Yao grabs it and throws it down two-handed with gusto! Yao scores his first alley-oop jam in an NBA game! Rockets lead 20-18. Yao has 8 points.
1:20		From "YFS" (Yao's Favorite Spot...is it okay if I start using that acronym?), Yao faces toward the basket but also looks for an open man. Unable to find anyone open, he shoots a jumper which misses. The Wizards get the rebound.
:32		Francis shoots a jumper that doesn't draw iron. The ball is tipped high in the air and bounces behind Yao, who is standing in the middle of the lane. Yao bends down low to snare it with his arm fully outstretched. Gaining control of it about 4 feet from the basket, Yao puts on a wicked pump fake--putting a man in the air--then showing Jordanesque moves, takes one giant step and throws it down with authority on the right side of the hoop! The crowd rises out of their seat! That's another beautiful thing Yao does--always pump faking to get a clear shot or path to the bucket. It's almost second nature for him to think about the fake every time he gets the ball on the offensive end! The score is tied at 24. At the end of the quarter, Yao is 4-6 from the field and leads all scorers with 10 points.
2nd quarter
5:52		Yao takes a rest at the start of the 2nd quarter. When he checks into the game after a timeout, he receives the ball out high on the right side, and he hands the ball to Moochie who is flying past him. In a play very similar to the night before against the Mavs with Steve Francis, Moochie drives the lane with Yao running parallel beside him. Moochie draws the defense and bounces a beautiful pass to a wide-open Yao, who brings in the pass moving toward the basket at the edge of the lane about 4 feet from the rack. He takes one more step, stops, pump fakes, and leans toward the basket to lay it in easily off the glass. The Washington area play-by-play man marvels and exclaims, "There's no way to stop him!"
4:39		On an almost exact replay of what happened with 10:15 remaining in the first quarter, Yao is double-teamed in his favorite spot, but is aware enough to throw a perfect bullet pass to Moochie Norris who is cutting underneath the basket. Uh-oh: Moochie's shot is blocked by Kwame Brown. Oh well, we can't have it all. The ball is rebounded by Larry Hughes, who starts their fast break...
4:32		...Hughes tries to go coast-to-coast after Moochie's shot was blocked. On a fast run, he splits the lane (with Yao to his right) and tries to put in a layup, but THE LONG ARM OF 'THE YAO' IS THERE TO SWAT IT AWAY! WHAT GREAT ANTICIPATION BY THE BIG FELLA'!
3:10		Kenny Thomas is under the basket and tries to put up a shot in heavy Wizard traffic, but it's blocked. However, Yao has great position to pick up the loose ball in the middle of the lane about 5 feet from the bucket. He then wastes no time--he elevates high from a standstill and with his arm extended over the flailing arms of his opponents, banks one off the glass beautifully WITH HIS LEFT HAND!! He's so ambidextrous, it's not even funny! Rockets trail 40-41. Yao has 12 points for the game.
1:30		In "YFS," Yao without hesitation quickly dribbles one time to his right and goes up for a hook shot, but it goes in and out of the bucket. Even when he misses, it's close.
:20		Wizard Larry Hughes drives the baseline, but Yao comes over from the middle of the lane to GET THAT SHOT OUTTA HERE with OOMPH! This starts a Rocket fast break with Francis leading the charge, who passes to a trailing Terrence Morris. T-Mo catches the ball at the free throw line, takes one step, lofts himself skyward with his arm stretched back with the ball behind his head, and Tomahawk jams it with one hand! Although this wasn't a Yao score, we had to recognize Morris' crowd-aweing throw-down! It's got to demoralize the Wiz, and Yao helped start it all! At the end of the first half, the Rockets trail 44-45 after Jerry Stackhouse hit five 3-pointers in the first half for a total of 19 points. Yao leads the Rockets with 14 points on 6 of 9 shooting from the field.
3rd quarter
10:14		On the left side, Yao receives the ball outside of the paint, twirls and goes baseline, gets around his man and seems to have a clear lane for a reverse layup. But Stackhouse comes over and knocks the ball out of Yao's hand as he tries to lay it in. Give credit for the shorter 'Stack' to time his jump perfectly.
7:40		Yao gets the ball on the right side about 10 feet from the basket (the opposite side of "YFS"), and holds onto the ball and dribbles for about 6 seconds trying to get Brendan Haywood to commit one way or another. Yao finally decides to start his move: he dribbles right toward the lane to get about 2 feet closer to the goal (Brendan Haywood couldn't hold his ground against Yao's powerful lower body), then dribbles back the other way toward the baseline and goes up for a Kareem Abdul Jabbar Sky-Hook. No, don't tell me he's got that move down, too! Yes, he does!! Score the bucket! Is there anything this guy can't do? The Rockets trail 49-51, and the Wizard color analyst says, "He continues to impress."
3:01	Assist	Yao gets the ball right in the middle of the paint. FOUR Wizards converge around him, and with that adroit passing and court awareness we know he possesses, Yao immediately zips a pass to Glen Rice standing behind the 3-point line. Alone by himself, Rice hits the trey! The opposing defenses are already respecting Yao. "That's smart basketball," TV analyst Phil Chenier acknowledges. The Rockets lead 52-51.
2:11		Yao checks out of the game during a timeout for Kenny Thomas.
4th quarter
4:32		Yao checks back into the game with the Rockets up 87-76 before Rice hits two free throws.
3:57	Free Throws	Yao gets delivered in the ball inside the free throw line while moving toward the basket, and gets hammered.
1:55		Tyronn Lue drives the lane and tries to put up a scoop shot off the glass, but Yao easily swats it away. The Compaq Center crowd croons! The Rockets hold on for the win, 93-86. Yao scored 18 points, went 7 for 11 from the field, 4 for 4 from the line, had 8 rebounds and 4 blocks.