Indazone
06-04-2009, 05:41 PM
Found a translated article on Yao giving the inner workings of the Rockets. Very interesting. Yao and Shane keeping Ron-Ron under control so he plays under control instead of jacking up shot after shot. Some commentary about how the Lakers were unprepared for the Rockets tenacious defense initially.
http://www.jfdaily.com/newspaper/xwcb/page_42/200906/t20090602_657943.html
Reporter Chen Min of Shanghai Morning Post reports from Beijing
For this past season, the Houston Rockets had a most difficult and turbulent season; not only had they to face the series of changes and gelling brought by the joining of Ron Artest, they had also to face the continuous sicknesses and injuries of their key players. But as far as Yao Ming was concerned, it was a harvest year in his 7th NBA season, and it was not as difficult and bad as his previous season.
“It was a terrible year last year.” Yao Ming shook his head. That season, the Houston Rockets had come up with the second longest winning streak in the history of NBA, but for Yao Ming, he had to face, however unwilling he was, another set-back by his injury; he had to take a surgery to implant into his left foot stainless steel nails to fix his fractured bone. “Did you still remember what I kept saying at that time? We’ve passed the snow mountain and the endless pastures, and winning was in sight…..but then I died (Note: Yao Ming must be referring to the Long March of the Red Army)." Yao Ming said. According to him, the frustrated feeling at that time almost drove him mad.
But this time, “Similar process, but dissimilar result. I have toughed it up and lived through it (together with my team mates), and we have achieved our initial goal (of passing the first round). All our efforts had their payback. I felt comfortable about this.” he said.
Not only that; Yao Ming working diligently with his team mates together had finally established their own playing style in this season. “What is most essential is that we finally established our own playing style. And that is we put the pressure on our opponents for the entire 48 minutes; basically we will establish our superiority and advantage in the first 3 quarters, and a lot of times, in the last 5 minutes, basically our opponents will have to automatically give up. We no longer need to strive to win in the last minute. There were lots of victories in this season, including the ones over the Portland TrailBlazers in the playoff that were clinched in this way. The Houston Rockets in this season is no longer the type of team that relies on the last minutes to win the game; moreover we have become a very disciplined, stable and consistent team.” Yao Ming said.
This is also precisely the key why the Houston Rockets surprised everyone in the first game with the LA Lakers in the second round of the playoff. Yao Ming thought: “The key to the style that we have formed is still on defense; we just made our opponents to have to fight for every of their points. We just slowed it down and grind it out with our opponents, but towards the end, we fought more ruthless than our opponents. Game 1 (with LA Lakers) was very typical. First of all, we just focused and played our defense; secondly, they were not well prepared mentally for the game, and they wanted to finish us in one big gulp. Unfortunately, they bumped into our iron slab. So at the end, they just had to clench their teeth and concede defeat.”
The most vivid memory in most fans’ mind about Game 1 of the playoff series with LA Lakers in the second round was not only just that the Houston Rockets had won but it was that touching scene of Yao Ming insisting to return to court to continue playing in less than 54 seconds, after receiving a hard bang on his knee by Kobe Bryant with a pain so hurt that he crumbled on the floor. It was after the Houston Rockets had eventually broken that eternal jinx to avoid elimination in first round, and shell-shocked the basketball world with their tenacious and never-say-die team character in second round that Yao Ming finally obtained the consensus and approval of all basketball critics, experts and fans that he is the leader of this Houston Rockets team.
But Yao Ming actually thought this way: “Well, this cannot be concluded as such (that I’m the sole leader of this team). In our team, there is this small team of collective leadership. It includes me, Shane Battier, and Luis Scola, but mainly it is I and Shane Battier. Even though every of us is not that kind of player that can decide the outcome of a game by our clutch shots, we are the ones that will always be there on the court for our team, and we ensure that Ron Artest will be under control and not become impulsive and emotional. Once he is under control and plays well, then our team will operate and run normally. It is just like a chain, each ring interlocks with each other.”
Moreover, he disclosed the following story (that happened in the locker room). “For all these years, I only had this flare of temper once in the locker room this season. This happened after our first game with the LA Lakers in the regular season, and we were thrashed and humiliated on the road. But my blow-up was not exactly just about this particular loss, it was about the general condition/situation and state of mind of the team during that stretch of time. Right after that match, I stood up and spoke out to my team mates in the locker room: We always bragged about that tomorrow will be a new day. But unless we start to ponder on what we should do (to improve ourselves as a team), and not just thinking that there is still a tomorrow, tomorrow will never be a new day, and we will never have a tomorrow!”
After that (blow-up incident in the locker room), although there were not immediate drastic changes to the team situation, “But I felt right after that, Shane Battier, Ron Artest and Brent Barry took turn to communicate with me privately.; Uncle Mutombo had yet to rejoin the team at that time. And so this small team (of collective leadership) formed gradually. I don’t want to claim the whole credit that it was because of my cohesive force that had formed this small team (of collective leadership), but at least everybody had started to become concerned and think more about the team. If they had not, then regardless of what I said would have become useless.”
As far as Yao Ming was concerned, “I don’t need to fight for anything (i.e. regarding team leadership); all I need to do is to fight for every rebound, and strive to win every game. Of course, it does not mean that I don’t care (to become a team leader); it’s impossible that a player does not care to become a leader in the team, but this should come naturally.
http://www.jfdaily.com/newspaper/xwcb/page_42/200906/t20090602_657943.html
Reporter Chen Min of Shanghai Morning Post reports from Beijing
For this past season, the Houston Rockets had a most difficult and turbulent season; not only had they to face the series of changes and gelling brought by the joining of Ron Artest, they had also to face the continuous sicknesses and injuries of their key players. But as far as Yao Ming was concerned, it was a harvest year in his 7th NBA season, and it was not as difficult and bad as his previous season.
“It was a terrible year last year.” Yao Ming shook his head. That season, the Houston Rockets had come up with the second longest winning streak in the history of NBA, but for Yao Ming, he had to face, however unwilling he was, another set-back by his injury; he had to take a surgery to implant into his left foot stainless steel nails to fix his fractured bone. “Did you still remember what I kept saying at that time? We’ve passed the snow mountain and the endless pastures, and winning was in sight…..but then I died (Note: Yao Ming must be referring to the Long March of the Red Army)." Yao Ming said. According to him, the frustrated feeling at that time almost drove him mad.
But this time, “Similar process, but dissimilar result. I have toughed it up and lived through it (together with my team mates), and we have achieved our initial goal (of passing the first round). All our efforts had their payback. I felt comfortable about this.” he said.
Not only that; Yao Ming working diligently with his team mates together had finally established their own playing style in this season. “What is most essential is that we finally established our own playing style. And that is we put the pressure on our opponents for the entire 48 minutes; basically we will establish our superiority and advantage in the first 3 quarters, and a lot of times, in the last 5 minutes, basically our opponents will have to automatically give up. We no longer need to strive to win in the last minute. There were lots of victories in this season, including the ones over the Portland TrailBlazers in the playoff that were clinched in this way. The Houston Rockets in this season is no longer the type of team that relies on the last minutes to win the game; moreover we have become a very disciplined, stable and consistent team.” Yao Ming said.
This is also precisely the key why the Houston Rockets surprised everyone in the first game with the LA Lakers in the second round of the playoff. Yao Ming thought: “The key to the style that we have formed is still on defense; we just made our opponents to have to fight for every of their points. We just slowed it down and grind it out with our opponents, but towards the end, we fought more ruthless than our opponents. Game 1 (with LA Lakers) was very typical. First of all, we just focused and played our defense; secondly, they were not well prepared mentally for the game, and they wanted to finish us in one big gulp. Unfortunately, they bumped into our iron slab. So at the end, they just had to clench their teeth and concede defeat.”
The most vivid memory in most fans’ mind about Game 1 of the playoff series with LA Lakers in the second round was not only just that the Houston Rockets had won but it was that touching scene of Yao Ming insisting to return to court to continue playing in less than 54 seconds, after receiving a hard bang on his knee by Kobe Bryant with a pain so hurt that he crumbled on the floor. It was after the Houston Rockets had eventually broken that eternal jinx to avoid elimination in first round, and shell-shocked the basketball world with their tenacious and never-say-die team character in second round that Yao Ming finally obtained the consensus and approval of all basketball critics, experts and fans that he is the leader of this Houston Rockets team.
But Yao Ming actually thought this way: “Well, this cannot be concluded as such (that I’m the sole leader of this team). In our team, there is this small team of collective leadership. It includes me, Shane Battier, and Luis Scola, but mainly it is I and Shane Battier. Even though every of us is not that kind of player that can decide the outcome of a game by our clutch shots, we are the ones that will always be there on the court for our team, and we ensure that Ron Artest will be under control and not become impulsive and emotional. Once he is under control and plays well, then our team will operate and run normally. It is just like a chain, each ring interlocks with each other.”
Moreover, he disclosed the following story (that happened in the locker room). “For all these years, I only had this flare of temper once in the locker room this season. This happened after our first game with the LA Lakers in the regular season, and we were thrashed and humiliated on the road. But my blow-up was not exactly just about this particular loss, it was about the general condition/situation and state of mind of the team during that stretch of time. Right after that match, I stood up and spoke out to my team mates in the locker room: We always bragged about that tomorrow will be a new day. But unless we start to ponder on what we should do (to improve ourselves as a team), and not just thinking that there is still a tomorrow, tomorrow will never be a new day, and we will never have a tomorrow!”
After that (blow-up incident in the locker room), although there were not immediate drastic changes to the team situation, “But I felt right after that, Shane Battier, Ron Artest and Brent Barry took turn to communicate with me privately.; Uncle Mutombo had yet to rejoin the team at that time. And so this small team (of collective leadership) formed gradually. I don’t want to claim the whole credit that it was because of my cohesive force that had formed this small team (of collective leadership), but at least everybody had started to become concerned and think more about the team. If they had not, then regardless of what I said would have become useless.”
As far as Yao Ming was concerned, “I don’t need to fight for anything (i.e. regarding team leadership); all I need to do is to fight for every rebound, and strive to win every game. Of course, it does not mean that I don’t care (to become a team leader); it’s impossible that a player does not care to become a leader in the team, but this should come naturally.