Please give a simple one word answer to this question, there is no explanation needed. Is Yao Ming a ?soft? NBA player? Please keep in mind that "soft" players can still produce and be good-great NBA players. I am particularly interested in posters that are not Rockets fans. I'll begin............Yes he is soft
I think he is. With hes size he should be more aggressive. Im hoping he will start to understand that.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting emannen:</div><div class="quote_post">Please give a simple one word answer to this question</div> Why do i get the feeling that you are trying to get everyone to say that Yao is soft? If you wanted "one word answers" you should have made a poll.
I'll say yes & no. I've seen two sides of Yao Ming on the court, he just needs to be more consistent at being aggressive. I think he's labeled soft unfairly at times. People confuse playing with class and not wanting to foul hard as soft. For me, a soft player doesn't like contact and won't fight back when players get physical with them. I can't say that about Yao, before he came to the NBA he shoved and elbowed Ben Wallace after Big Ben tried to give him some cheap shots in the Olympics. I've seen him stand his ground against Shaq and take it right at him. I'd like to see him stop getting posterized and foul instead, but that will come soon enough once he assimilates more.
Yao is a good player. He's got pretty good fundamentals, has range on his jumper, can block some shots, hits his free throws, and is an effective passer out of the post. All of which begs the question: why does he only average 18 and 8? The man is 7'6" for God's sake! In my opinion, he should be pulling down 10 boards every night in his sleep. As skilled as he is, he certainly lacks aggresivness. That's not to say that he doesn't sometimes get riled and decides to use his size, but not nearly consistently enough. If Yao is ever to become the dominant force he can be, he is going to need to start asserting himself right now. The Rockets gave him a new toy, Swift, and that should help some. But it's up to Yao to decide now whether he wants to be a dominant 20/10 guy or just a solid 7'6" player who is forever the subject of debates such as this.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Please give a simple one word answer to this question</div> Yes.
Should have made a poll.Hes definitely soft.No reason someone with his size and talent should be getting less than 10 rebounds per game and shoot so many outside shots.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Schaddy:</div><div class="quote_post">Yao is a good player. He's got pretty good fundamentals, has range on his jumper, can block some shots, hits his free throws, and is an effective passer out of the post. All of which begs the question: why does he only average 18 and 8?.</div> Only 18 and 8? Is that what you're complaint is(Jermaine O'neal averages 8 rebs too, is he soft). He only plays about 30-35 mins a game, and he's puttin up solid numbers. Oh I forgot, compared to Shaq, he should be putting up more numbers. That's your basis..... <div class="quote_poster">Quoting Schaddy:</div><div class="quote_post">The man is 7'6" for God's sake! In my opinion, he should be pulling down 10 boards every night in his sleep. As skilled as he is, he certainly lacks aggresivness. That's not to say that he doesn't sometimes get riled and decides to use his size, but not nearly consistently enough. If Yao is ever to become the dominant force he can be, he is going to need to start asserting himself right now.</div> First off, he doesn't "lack aggressivness", he needs to be "more aggressive". Big difference. If he lacked aggressivness, I'm not sure he'd be in this league. I don't like people critical of Yao, who don't watch him on a nightly basis. 3 years in the league, and he has put up some great numbers. The only people who label him "soft" are people who don't even watch the Rockets. They make these assumption off watching dumb highlight shows. Yao plays the game the right way. He doesn't brag, boast, or celebrate after every point, if that's what you label "soft", then I guess you're right
I dont like it how he often settles for fadeaway jumpshots when he is in the lowpost, he should back people down. And I realy dont like it when he is at the high post...
Yao only played 30 MPG last year, which leads to a lower rebounding average. However, look at Yao's stats since he came into the league. He's increased his FG% every season, he's increased his FTA every season, he's increased his BPG every season, and he's increased his fouls per game every season. He's only played in the league for 3 seasons and is still only 24 years old.
Yao need's to increase his energy and be able to play 35 mpg and average at least 10 rebounds. For a guy 7 6' with his skill sets there is no reason he shouldn't be able to put down 10+ boards, it's all effort and toughness, I don't see it in Yao.
I say Yes - but not because I think he lacks effort, toughness or aggressiveness. Even though he plays 30 mpg, he's really only playing 20 mpg effectively. The rest of the time he's huffing and puffing and tugging on his shorts. For some reason (maybe it has something to do with being so tall) he just can't get his fitness level up there. I highly doubt that its from lack of effort...
Yao doesn't have the killer instinct. Old habits are hard to change and Yao has been playing chinese basketball for a long time. Soft? i guess you can say that. But it's not because he can't get 10+ boards a night or because he gets posterized alot. Its because he doesn't have the instinct to pounce on lesser players. BUt yall have to think of this also, How hard would it be to get 10+ boards and block all the dunks when everyone and their mama wants to double team him on the boards and wants to flush it on a 7'6" guy. You have to admit when anyone has the oppurtunity they want to bring it on yao more than any other player out there. ever.
Well said KfrumHtown. Everyone puts excessive expectation on Yao just because he's 7'6. I hate people that overhype a player like that. It puts an unfair burden. Yao's already the 2nd best center in the league as it is. (Don't even bring up Amare's name because he's a PF) I think Yao's both soft and tough. There are glimpses of him being a tough player (Stuffing Shaq 3 times in a row in their first meeting, 22 rebound game earlier this year against Amare's Phoenix, or seeing Yao shoved that New Zealand forward dude 10 foot across the floor) and there are times where Yao really should've just tried to block a shot instead of taking charges. Also realize that when you're a good mid-range shooter (as is the case with Yao), you do NOT need to back a player down all the time. Shaq has ZERO outside shot and that's why he needs to back people down. However, keep in mind that Shaq is also more physically gifted than Yao in terms stamina and power. People need to understand that not everybody is freakishly athletic at 7foot+.
I think he's soft. He needs to play aggressively every single game. He still has an upside, but right now, from what I see, he's soft.
I think his personality has a tendency to clash with his ability to A) play aggressively; have a positive impact on Houston's overall play. I think this is way more psychological than anything else. Looking at him I see someone who knows he needs to work hard, but is afraid of passing off as too selfish. Houston has T-Mac on its lineup, a premier player in the NBA and a player who is more than capable of being the first option on any team. Yao is afraid of the spotlight because he sees Houston as T-Mac's team more than his. He is also facing extremely high expectations because he's one of the first exceptionally tall players to present significant skills, but he's faced with the same problems. It's hard to be agile and mobile at 7'6"! Don't forget that part of the equation. Also, height doesn't make a rebounder. Leverage techniques, effort, and will do.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Rock4life:</div><div class="quote_post">Only 18 and 8? Is that what you're complaint is(Jermaine O'neal averages 8 rebs too, is he soft). He only plays about 30-35 mins a game, and he's puttin up solid numbers. Oh I forgot, compared to Shaq, he should be putting up more numbers. That's your basis..... First off, he doesn't "lack aggressivness", he needs to be "more aggressive". Big difference. If he lacked aggressivness, I'm not sure he'd be in this league. I don't like people critical of Yao, who don't watch him on a nightly basis. 3 years in the league, and he has put up some great numbers. The only people who label him "soft" are people who don't even watch the Rockets. They make these assumption off watching dumb highlight shows. Yao plays the game the right way. He doesn't brag, boast, or celebrate after every point, if that's what you label "soft", then I guess you're right </div> I think you misunderstood me. I like Yao; I love the fact that he's quiet and goes about his business. However, because of his size and strength, he should be putting up better numbers. Sorry, that's just the way I see it. Think about the biggest kid you play pickup games against. Does he or does he not get a lot of boards, blocks, etc. Yao needs to learn to use his size, and until he asserts himself, that will be associated with being soft. As to the Jermaine O'Neal argument, he's 6'11" and 240. If he put up the numbers he does now and was 7'6" and 300+, you can rest assured that I would tend to think he was soft. Again, I like Yao, but I want to see more from him. Until he starts using his size more effectively and becomes the post monster he can be, I'll think he's more on the soft side. Sorry...
