More Yao-Hakeem photos, quotes, and video
May 23rd, 2007by John
More photos of Yao and Hakeem’s workout on Tuesday have been posted in the YaoMania! forum. Click here to check ’em out (scroll down to the bottom of the page).Here’s some video from the historical Hakeem-Yao workout that took place at Toyota Center on Tuesday.
Last but not least, here are some quotes that both Yao and Hakeem provided to the press after the workout:
From Hakeem:
* “It’s amazing how agile he is for a guy of that size. He’s so smart because he understands the game. He’s just looking for the things that he can do so that he can enhance the skills that he’s already got. He just has to dominate the game. He has so many advantages because of his size and skill so I’m just showing him little things that he can do to consistently be a dominating player. It will be scary to see what he can do in the future.”
* “He has to take advantage of his size, meaning when he’s in the lane, the lane is closed. He should block everything that comes in there. By standing up, he’s very difficult to shoot over. He has all the tools and all the potential. By adding little things to his game, he can be dominating.”
* “It was so much fun to work with a great player like him. He has so much potential. It’s scary to think what he can really do. By just adding little things to his game he can raise his level.
“The important thing for him because he is playing so well already is just how to dominate the game. He has all the advantages and he’s so skilled. Little things he can do to make him be a dominant player consistently. It’s scary to see what he can do in the future.”
From Yao:
* “I’m learning the mentality from him. I don’t know how many times I heard him talk about being dominant. That’s why he can be ‘The Dream.’ The mentality is the biggest difference between him and me right now. I hope not far in the future that I can do things like him.”
* “His moves looks easy on television, but when you actually do it and there is contact on your body, it’s different. I’m going to do what he taught me every day. I need to do it a couple hundred times a day and get myself used to it. I then need to use those moves in a live game, maybe in an international team game. That’s a good place to try a new skill.”
* “He’s got two championship rings. I’m not saying I figured out everything today, but I hear him. ‘You are the biggest player on the court. You need to go in and change the game. You need to be dominant.’ He repeated that time and time again. I feel a little bit different. I feel his heart.”
For the articles where these quotes came from, check out the following stories (the quotes are slightly different depending on which author’s version you read):