China Hoops

Moving...for good

2007-04-20T14:18:00.000+08:00

Ok, so I haven't updated in months. The reason is because I was offered a place at FIBA.com. With the launch of their new site design, they have a new "blogosphere" feature, of which I am now a part. To see more of my writings, please to there from now on. Since I can start from the beginning again, I have a lot of new ideas, so please stay tuned.

More on Yi Jianlian

2006-11-06T18:04:00.000+08:00

Perhaps something I might have neglected to say in my last post is this: It is not certain that Yi Jianlian will be going to the NBA. Probably what a lot of people missed is the fact that it was not the CBA that gave their consent to Yi, it was his club that gave him their OK.

So, does this announcement mean nothing then? No, it actually means lot for Yi's chances. When Yao Ming and Team Yao was preparing for the draft in the summer of 2002, he not only had to negotiate with the CBA, he also had to talk with his club. People might forget that there was actually a lot of uncertainty all the way up to the draft, and the Rockets had to have a lot of confidence to stand by their man. For Yi, he has already cleared one obstacle, and gained an ally. Because they announced their consent, his team will not want to lose face if he can't enter after all, so they'll be fighting for him when he's talking to the CBA. Furthermore, now the NBA teams will know Yi is serious, and what's more, he has the backing of his club. There might not be a team like the Rockets that would take the chance on an unproven rookie that might not even come over, so every bit of official backing is a point in Yi's favor

Another factor that's going for Yi is that Yao has been through all this before. The CBA will now be more confident in handling the situation, and Yi's people will have a precedent to go by.

Does this mean that Yi's path is paved already smooth? Well, let's say it's smoother than Yao's was, but it's definitely not going to be a rosy pathway from here to the NBA. For one thing, the CBA has set the rule that Chinese players can't leave China for the NBA until they are 22. Yi will still be only 19 when the the 2007 NBA draft takes place. However, I think the CBA can see far enough ahead to be able to see that this rule should be either be abolished, or that Yi should be an exception. Yi isn't as ready as he should be, but he's as ready as he'll ever be playing in China.

There's also the financial aspect, as both the Guangdong Tigers and the CBA will want some monetary reimbursement for giving away a crown jewel. There are rumors that Guangdong will want even more money than the Shanghai Sharks wanted for Yao, which I think is somewhat greedy of them, because Yi's absence won't affect the Tigers the way Yao's did.

Meanwhile, this news makes its way into Yao's hearing, and he gives his first response. The first thing he said (or at least, the first quote of his in the article) said that he didn't want Yi to end up in Houston, because if the Rockets were high enough to draft him, then that would probably mean they would not have made the playoffs. That's a very good point, and that's not mentioning the fact that Yi would not be the kind of three-point shooting power forward (Steve Novak, Scott Padgett, Juwan Howard) or scrapper (Chuck Hayes) that the Rockets are looking for. Yao did say the NBA team Yi should be on was the Phoenix Suns. Unfortunately, the Suns will probably also have too low a draft pick to draft Yi.

One interesting quote Yao did have was this: "I can't say now whether Yi entering the NBA will be helpful for Chinese basketball, but it will be good for his personal improvement." Personally, I think Yi's personal improvement will help Chinese basketball, as another NBA-level player will automatically make the Chinese national team better.

Speaking of the national team, Jonas Kazlauskas must have a big headache right now. Six of his players, four of whom are supposed to be starting, have nagging injuries. Du Feng has a knee injury, Wang ZhiZhi is still fighting his leg injury, Liu Wei just pulled a ligament, Yi Jianlian and Wang Shipeng sprained their ankles, and Li Nan is also injured. While they are not really, really serious, they will require rest, and the games against the NBDL team, the Albuquerque Thunderbirds, is coming up in less than two weeks, and the Asian Games will be starting in days. However, there might be a silver lining, because if one of the above players pulls outs, a younger player, just waiting for a chance to shine, might be able to claim a spot on the roster that would normally be filled by that veteran.

News from China

2006-11-03T16:57:00.000+08:00

In 2007, a collection of all-star players from the CBA and Korean Basketball League (KBL) will be facing off against each other. Now, similar to the NBA's All-Star Game voting, you can vote for who makes the roster here (it's all in Chinese, of course).

However, I have a feeling that the Chinese players won't be taking it seriously. No one plays hard in an all-star game, but the level of Korean basketball has fallen off in recent years, and Wang ZhiZhi said publicly that they no longer look at Korea as their biggest rivals, instead saying that Lebanon and Qatar were the biggest challenge they would say (and then continued by saying they would still beat them anyway).

Immediately after it was announced that Yi Jianlian would be entering the NBA draft, Sina.com put up a poll asking where Yi would be drafted. With about 10,000 votes, most (37%) think he'll be gone in the first ten. I was a bit surprised, though, that fully 18% thought he wouldn't even get drafted in the first round, and only 6% said he would be picked first. If people think Chinese fans are biased, then they should look at this poll.

Another poll that was made asked readers to pick the four players they thought would be cut from the national team. If you don't remember, my picks were Hu Xuefeng, Zhang Jinsong, Zhang Quingpeng and Huo Nan. The general consensus agreed with me on Huo and Zhang Songtao, but the majority said the last two would be Zhang Quingpeng and Chen Jianghua, instead of my predictions of Hu Xuefeng and Zhang Jinsong.

On a related topic, it appears that Li Nan's long-lasting injury (which has prevented him from playing in the World Championships or any games in this CBA season) means he will not be traveling to Doha for the Asian Games. Originally, it was Gong Songlin that was going to be his replacement, but when he got injured himself, he was forced to withdraw, meaning that a spot has been opened for one more lucky player.

Finally, an interesting article from Slam Magazine, which was posted here. Although the author was there to try to catch up with God Shammgod, he also had some nice things to say about Yi and Chen Jianghua.

Yi and Chen both look good and like legit prospects. Yi finished with 36 points and close to 20 boards. He is stronger than I thought, quite athletic, has good court sense and is a little more street than I thought. Byrd tried to intimidate him with pushes and bows and Yi gave it right back. It’s still a little hard for me to gauge his NBA potential because he was a man amongst boys. If he can maintain that attitude and aggression against guys as big or bigger than him, he is going to be very good. Point guard Chen is supposedly only 17 or so but birthdates of the players here are notoriously suspect. I’d say he’s 19 or 20 and he looks legit too.

Chen is very quick, but under control, has a great handle, is confident and seems to have really good instincts. He and hahmm were a good matchup. Chinese players do not get the greatest coaching and often have trouble really developing their games but Chen is lucky to be from Guangdong and in the best possible place. I am definitely going to keep my eye on him and hope he continues to grow, both literally (he is probably 6-1 and could use 2-3 inches) and hoops-wise.

However, I found one interesting little side-note right near the end:

The crowds of people waiting there for autographs had time to rush over and crush against the door, screaming “Yi Jianlin!” The team translator said to another American on board, “You take the back and I’ll take the front. Put your shoulder down and push.” I walked off the bus right in front of them and a huge surge clawed at Yi. They followed the plan and just bulled through. It was pretty wild and aggressive. A lot of people were asking me for autographs, which I thought was funny. I actually signed a few from people who were persistent even when I said Chinese something approximating, “You don’t want me.” I signed a jacket, a T shirt and several programs.

Either the masses were just interested in getting an autograph from someone famous (as evidenced from asking an autograph from the writer, who's a nobody), or else Yi Jianlian is really big superstar. I would pick the latter. I would also say that there's going to be several dozen million new fans of whatever NBA team drafts Yi next year, and that Yi's jersey number (9 for Guangdong, 11 internationally) will probably be one of the top 5 jersey sellers in the NBA, if not the very top.

If you believe all that is going to happen, then you find yourself wondering "Would ever surpass Yao in popularity?". You know what? I'm wondering that myself...

Yi Jianlian officially entering the 2007 draft.

2006-11-02T20:03:00.000+08:00

Although for months NBA draft sites have been putting Yi Jianlian on their 2007 mock drafts, it has finally been announced that it is certain Yi will be entering the NBA draft next year, which means (barring a total fall from grace that leaves him undrafted and unsigned) he'll be only the fourth Chinese player to do play on an NBA team.

(The Chinese article is here, if you want to read the original article).

Although I don't think it will be just clear sailing from here (the NBA team that drafts him, the CBA, and Guangdong will have a lot of negotiations on a buyout, contract terms and so on), this is the first big step.

However, the man himself, Yi, refused to comment on his feelings or where he thought he would be drafted, saying only that he was still focused mainly on winning the Asian Games and the CBA title.

After the CBA season has run its full course, I will be planning on focusing a lot more on Yi Jianlian and his coming NBA career, on his strengths and weaknesses, and what to expect and not expect from him.

Before the start of the CBA season, I wrote a long post about the change in the CBA schedule. At the time, I was opposed to the change, for reasons listed in the post. However, now, I may stand corrected. Of the three warmup games played by the national team before the Asian Games, one game will be against a junior Australian team, which won't do any power of good.

However, they will twice play against the champions of the NBDL, the Albuquerque Thunderbirds. Not only will this be good competition for the national team, it will also server as a comparison. If the team's top young prospects get outplayed by players that can't even make the IR of an NBA team, then there should be some serious re-thinking going on in the offices of the CBA. This is especially important for Yi. He should take this chance to prove himself, grab it by the horns, and dominate. Although it won't improve his draft position any, since a dominant performance is expected, the opposite, a lackluster game, would hurt his position a lot.

Asian Games roster and predictions

2006-10-29T22:37:00.001+08:00

Jonas Kazlauskas announced the 16-man roster for the training camp, which will be cut down to 12 before the Asian Games. Apparently, Wang Shipeng, Zhu Fangyu, Yi Jianlian, Wang ZhiZhi, Li Nan, Mo Ke, Du Feng, Liu Wei, and Tang Zhengdong all have guaranteed roster spots–unless they get injured, they won't be cut. That leaves Zhang Jinsong, Hu Xuefeng, Zhang Quingpeng, Chen Jianghua, and the three Aoshen players (Sun Yue, Zhang Songtao, and Huo Nan) to fight it out for the last three spots. I think Sun Yue and Zhang Songtao will make it in without any problem. The last spot will be hotly contested, Chen Jianghua will be the last two to make it. Both Zhang Quingpeng and Hu Xuefeng have had a better season than Chen, but I still firmly believe (and I think Kazlauskas recognizes as well) that Chen is still one of the top-three point guards in China, despite being less than impressive in his debut season.

If these predictions comes true, then the roster will look something like this:

PG: Liu Wei, Sun Yue, Chen Jianghua
SG: Wang Shipeng, Li Nan,
SF: Zhu Fangyu, Du Feng
PF: Wang ZhiZhi, Mo Ke
C- Yi Jianlian, Tang Zhengdong

Although Kazlauskas will probably have Yi Jianlian and Wang ZhiZhi as his starting (very athletic) Twin Towers, I think Tang Zhengdong will be the first one off the bench. His role will be something like Bonzi Well's on the Rockets this coming season–he doesn't start, but he plays almost as much as the other starters. I think that there will be a three-man rotation at the power forward and center spot. Kazlauskas did the same in the World Championships, with Yi, Wang, and Yao.

While the big man rotation has been getting better and better, Zhang Songtao will be left out in the cold—again. Zhang has the talent to be a star for China, yet with the flux of big men, he is without an opportunity to improve.

Although on my depth chart I listed Chen as shooting guard, because he is a naturally a shooting guard, I think Kazlauskas will use him (when he's in the game) as the primary ball handler. But, like Zhang Songtao, he has several other competitors at his position, so minutes could be scarce. However, his one advantage over Zhang is that he is the team's best dribbler, so Kazlauskas will use him in the face of a dogged full-court press from the other team.

Tattoos and Techs

2006-10-28T08:56:00.000+08:00

Over at ESPN, as part of a special preview for each team, the Daily Dime included a section called "Ask the Blogger", and the question asked was "What would it take for you to get a tattoo of the [insert NBA team] on your chest." I'm green with envy that each blogger could get a free appearance on ESPN. However, if I cannot participate in body, I can participate in spirit. So, I'll do my own twist on the question: What would it take for me to get a tattoo of the CBA logo?

I hope to keep my chest unscarred, but I would get a tattoo when...

–Yao Ming breaks a backboard, preferably over Amare Stoudemire, in the finals of the Beijing Olympics, on a momentum-turning play.

–Yi Jianlian becomes a full-fledged NBA player...on and off the court. That means he totes the gun, he sports the 'fro, and he shows off the girl.

–Chen Jianghua becomes the first Chinese player (besides Yao, of course) to get a technical. He dunks in the face of a big stiff, and then screams in his face, thereby drawing the tech.

–Tang Zhengdong shows the utter lack of quality centers in the NBA by not only being signed by a team, but playing, and starting for his team.

Unlikely? Probably? But then again, I don't like having a permanent scar on my chest. And I think most bloggers who participated on ESPN didn't either, so they just said some wacko things. And didn't it make it all the more brilliant?

The CBA and its system

2006-10-27T15:29:00.000+08:00

On Tuesday night, Guangdong brushed aside Shangdong. Two days before, they shell-shacked the Zhejiang Lions, and walked away with a 35 points victory. The game before that was another 35 point win, this time against Shanghai. In short, after a 6-point opening win against Bayi, they have dominated everyone. No team has come close to even challenging them, let alone getting a win. Maybe this will change when Jiangsu and their Player of the Week Tang Zhengdong comes calling on Friday, but the Tigers' dominance has already been established for all to see.

This team is a dynasty by anyone's standards. They already have the "three-peat", and a fourth straight title in looking very, very likely. Indeed, they might threaten the Bayi Rockets of old, who won the CBA's first six titles. And one question that is already being asked around the league is: Can they win it all? That is, can they go undefeated throughout the regular season and sweep the playoffs? As the season progresses, that seems more and more likely, and with a shorter season, the odds for it get higher and higher.

And perhaps the most scary thing of it all is that this team isn't even as good as they want to be, as the team's collective prime has yet to be reached. Their three native starters, Wang Shipeng, Zhu Fangyu, and Yi Jianlian, are 23, 23, and 19, respectively. Although they'll almost certainly be losing Yi next year to the NBA draft, they'll hardly be affected, as junior national team starter, Zhou Peng, will simply be able to step in and fulfill his role. You could take away their foreign import, Terrence Green, but they could fill that hole with Chen Jianghua or Liu Xiaoyu, two of China's best young point guards. To say that they are stacked at every position is a big understatement.

Now, why write about this? Well, the Tigers are probably the perfect example of the almost unique (and outdated) system that is now in place in the CBA. Basically, there is no trading, no salary cap, no draft, and the only free agents are players that were released by their team (can you imagine a free agent market where the best free agents were Keith Van Horn and Dermarr Johnson?). Because of this, the Guangdong GM doesn't have to worry about whether one of his starters will get fed up and demand a trade, or whether there's enough room left in the salary cap to resign his star player (actually, I don't even think CBA teams have a GM, since he wouldn't have much to do). As a result of this, a team can easily retain their superstars, and become and remain a dynasty for many years, while the bottom-level teams stay the same. So, while Steve Kerr is wondering "Is parity good for the league?", the CBA is (or should be) wondering how to make the league more competitive. Thee remedy is actually as clear as anything: Every league has player movement, maybe some more and some less, and in different forms, but they all have a lot of players moving around. In the interest of competitiveness and progress, something similar should be instituted in the CBA. Maybe it doesn't even have to be all at once, but a step-by-step implementation will do wonders for the CBA's overall competition level. And no just for the competition; as each team gets better and has a better chance at winning, the fans will stick around and become more intereseted, thereby raising the popularity of the games, the attendance, and ultimately (and most important), the profit.

Beijing Olympics: China Exposed

2006-10-22T17:12:00.000+08:00

In this article, Yao Ming says that his fellow countrymen should "stop shouting in public and respect pedestrians". All of this is for, of course, the Beijing Olympics, so that China can present an image of an "internationalized host nation with a great cultural tradition."

Now, a while back I compared the upcoming Olympics to the "Hitler Olympics" (the 1938 Summer Olympics). There was massive cleanup before those Olympics, and it will and has been the same now, 70 years later.

Why? Well, China is a growing country, and despite its eagerness to show that it's very advanced compared to the rest of the world, it is in reality very poor, and not advanced at all in modern ways. The biggest reason for this is that China has been for years an isolated country. Some might think it's impossible for one of the biggest countries in the world in size and population to be cut off almost completely from foreign influence, yet that it what has happened. Furthermore, China is the oldest surviving civilization in the world, and over the years, its many and varied traditions have been kept intact, or at least a lot of them, anyway. However, a breakthrough from the outside was inevitable, and it did happen, although only gradually and over a period of years and decades. However, the processs had speeded up in the last 10 years, a lot of which goes to the fact that China is now a world leader.

So, how does this relate to Yao, and the Olympics? Well, in two year's time, what you'll have is a city hosting thousands of international players, reporters, and more, and being watched by billions around the world. This has never, ever happened before in China. Never have they had this kind of openness before so many people. So, gut check time for the Chinese goverment all around. The first thing they want to do is hide everything that's bad in China, and sad to say, there's a lot of bad things in China right now. The people are poor, mainland China is known for thieves and pickpocketers (here in Hong Kong, people are very wary about going over the border to Guangzhou, because it's notorious for having a ton of pickpocketers), and people are very backward. So, word is spread (secretly, of course), that "bumping off" poor people is OK, or that maybe you finally need to crack down on these thieves. Anything to maintain that good image to the outside world.

But, Yao, being both a patriot and a truthful guy, suddenly comes out with "we [need to] work on our public courtesy." Perhaps more people listen to Yao than any other Chinese figure, premier, prime minister, and everyone else included. So, to say publicly, in front of billions, that Chinese need to work on common courtesy and manners...well, talk about losing face. It's true, but no one (in China, at least) is supposed to say.

However, the worst thing about the Olympic "preparations" and all is that it's all game. Everyone knows that China is poor, and a lot of people are uneducated and backward. And when the games are over, and everyone leaves, you know what's going to happen? Those people who were swept off the street will come right back again, and Beijing will be back to "normal": corrupt, uneducated, and poor.

Zhejiang vs. Fujian

2006-10-21T08:49:00.000+08:00

For the past week or so, Arthur Volbert over at AsiaBasket has been going on about a "new name to remember". Ding Jinhui is supposedly only 16 years old, yet he scored first 22, then 25 points in consecutive games. However, the game after that, he only scored 5, so I was very pleased when CCTV-5 decided to show his team on Friday night, as I wanted to see whether he was just a flash-in-the-pan, or the real thing.

The game itself was quite exciting, as Fujian, who was down almost the whole second half, made a push in the last minute, thanks to a couple of threes. Zhejiang had a one-point lead and the ball with about 50 seconds left, but they missed (the game recap at Sina.com said it was a foul, but I didn't think so), and a lob from Fujian's Chris Porter got Fujian a wide-open layup with 22 seconds left. Soumaila Samake (a big Nigerian dude) had a last chance, but that was off the rim, and so Fujian came away the winners.

This was my second time to see Fujian's Yang Chao, and I became even more impressed with him than ever. He scored 32 points (a team-high), shot 8-of-14, made two threes, and was instrumental in bringing Fujian back from an 11-point deficit. He can definitely shoot, as he lit it up from 20+ feet several times. Could he make the national team? I think it's a definite possiblity. Maybe not for the Asian Games this year, or even next year, but sometime in the future, he definitely has a fighting chance. He's still only 20, so his path can only go upwards from here.

However, the big question is Ding. Was his scoring streak a fluke, or was it a sign of things to come? Well, after watching him play a full game, I can't say I was terribly impressed with him. He's solid, but not great. However, for a 16-year old to be solid when playing against guys twice his age, then solid is great. In 22 minutes, he had 8 points and 5 rebounds, shooting 2-of-6. He hustled and he fought for rebounds, which is more than what can be said for most top CBA players. He's got a good foundation, and those 20-point games will give him a lot of confidence. If he keeps on building on his solid base, then his road will be very long and very rosy.

China Newswire

2006-10-20T17:27:00.000+08:00

This is kind of embarassing to post, but I'll say it anway: In my post about Shang Ping, I said he was "the first Chinese player since Ma Jian to play in NCAA Division I basketball". However, I am sorry to say that I have now found out that that is incorrect. Aaron Xia, who is already a junior, is playing D-1 ball at The Citadel. Many thanks to Xu.Jing for posting this.

Actually, after a little Google research, I found that, interestingly enough, he actually knows Yao Ming, as they both went to the Shanghai Sports Academy together. More info on that here.

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Now that I've accomplished all the goals I set for myself concerning Wikipedia, I've now decided to put the wind under my wings and set my sights on Youtube. So, the first thing I did was create a Chinese basketball Youtube group. As you can see, I've already added 60 vidoes. The videos include (but aren't limited to) Yao Ming, Wang ZhiZhi, Yi Jianlian, Chen Jianghua, Sun Yue, and more. In short, if there's a video about any Chinese-related player, then it'll be in there. The videos really do include everything, from the good (Chen Jianghua in the World Championships), to the bad (Sun Ming-Ming video clip), to the ugly (more Sun Ming-Ming).

Jiangsu vs. Liaoning

2006-10-17T18:52:00.001+08:00

Sunday night, CCTV-5 provided a game between these two teams, and after the final score was confirmed (118-107 to Jiangsu), I came away with a few good (and bad) impressions.

1. This was the first time I saw Yi Li, a 19-year old small forward, in action, and frankly, I wasn't impressed at all. Several people have said that Yi should replace Zhu Fangyu as starting small forward for the national team. I strongly disagree with that. Their main reason for replacing Zhu is that Yi is much more athletic. If Yi is an athletic player, then I would take the "fundamental" player any day. Actually, Zhu is neither very fundamental or un-athletic. He's skilled (meaning he can shoot lights out–usually), he can defend with some decency, and, most importantly, he has some bulk on his body. Yi is as skinny as a stick. I think he's ascending towards the national team, and he's still a teen, so he's got a while. Neverthless, he's not going to be starting for a while–probably not until after the Beijing Olympics. The new generation of Chinese players are coming up very fast, but they're very young, very raw, and very skinny (see Yi and Chen Jianghua).

2. The hero of this game was Tang Zhengdong. He was formerly on the national team until he got an attitude problem. Now, he's demoted back to the CBA, but it seems he really wants to get back. 40 points and 15 rebounds were on his stat sheet. Watching his movements, I'm not suprised that he went undrafted in the recent draft and no one signed him afterwards. He's got the moves and he's got the strength, but he's has feet of gum. His speed is somewhere between Yao Ming's and Sun MingMing's. Some speed agility training would be the best thing that could happen to him. If he improves (he's still only 22), then he could be a player in the mold of Mengke Bateer. And one more comparison- Tang vs Jiangsu–40 points, 15 rebounds. Wang ZhiZhi against Shanghai–41 points, 10 rebounds. Season scoring average–Wang ZhiZhi 34.5, Tang Zhengdong 32.5. Obviously, tt's a rough comparison, but I think that another improvement from Tang this season could see him in the NBA next year.

3. As Liaoning made started pressing late in the game (futilely, as they ended up losing anyway), the level of the CBA was once again made clear to me. Liaoning employed a full-court zone press with a halfcourt trap, and when the point guard of Jiangsu dribbled into the trap, instead of attacking the defenders and advancing past halfcourt that way, he instead turned and threw it to his backcourt partner, and Jiangsu got the ball over the line that way. OK, that's a nice strategy. However, in the NBA, do you see guys like Tony Parker throwing the ball to a teammate in a press defense? No, you him going right at them, and through them. The same goes for Nash, Iverson, Kidd, and all the other point guards. The fact is that CBA guards can't do the same against the less physical competition of their own league. Their physical strength is part of the problem, but their mentality is the bigger problem. Chen Jianghua is not a physical specimin; he's actually rather skinny and weak. Yet he was fearless, in driving to basket, and in challenging in press. The first time he came in when China was playing against Greece in the World Championships, he sped past the Greek defenders, and got Yi Jianlian an open look at the basket. I would have laughed, but I realized that that was the first time all game (it was mid-way in the second quarter already) that a Chinese guard tried to go past the press.

So, once again, I return to my favorite topic (or least favorite, depending on how you look at it): Chinese players don't have the heart. They're skilled, but they have no heart. Or no, let me put it this way: They have some skills, but they don't have other skills because those skills require heart. For example, how much heart does shooting require? Not an ounce? How about rebounding? To sacrifice your body and bang inside, it requires a lot (in fact, every junior high coach will tell you that in rebounding, heart is underrated, height is overrated. China has the height, but not the heart). The same goes for driving inside and defense. Yao Ming has often stated that China has the scorers, but does not, among other things, have the rebounders, the defenders, the drivers. The guys with heart are missing. The NBA term for 99% of Chinese players (Yao being that one percent) would be soft. Take a look at the guys who are considered "tough" in the NBA, the guys who are the exact antonyms of soft. Just a few names: Bruce Bowen, Ron Artest, Ben Wallace. Is it any coincedence all three are renowned for their defense?

Chinese players are often called "zombies" or "robots" in the way they seem not to care about losing or winning, and right now I'm afraid I can't disagree with those people.

Yao is out again; Fears are in

2006-10-12T19:21:00.000+08:00

Chinese basketball fans should be watching the CBA. Houston Rockets fans should be celebrating their win against the Grizzlies in their opening preseason game. Yao Ming fans should be revving up to watch Yao in action for the 2006-2007 season. Instead, every fan in those three categories are looking at this news article from the Houston Chronicle. The long and the short of it is that Yao is sidelined again, and this time for 10 days. The worries are not over the missed time (10 days in the preseason is not a big deal at all). It's the fact that, once again, Yao is missing time. And it's not missed time from unrelated injuries. It's the same toe, again and again. This is a problem that Yao has had for over a year.

Perhaps the first question this raises is whether Yao is still durable. For the first three years of his career, Yao missed two games in total. Now, a year and 27 missed games later, there a question. Just a whisper, but if he misses time in the season, then those whispers will come out in the open.

And how tragic would it be for a guy like Yao, with an indomitable spirit, and an unquenched will to work, to become just another guy who could have been so much better, but got overtaken by injuries. In every sport, in every league, you can name guys whose careers were interrupted, shortened, or even cancelled altogether because of their injuries. Perhaps the first NBA player to come to mind would be Bill Walton. How ironic would it be if Yao, who was hyped by Walton from the very beginning, would become like him?

Chinese basketball fans should be watching the CBA. Houston Rockets fans should be celebrating their win against the Grizzlies in their opening preseason game. Yao Ming fans should be revving up to watch Yao in action for the 2006-2007 season. Instead, every fan in those three categories are looking at this news article from the Houston Chronicle. The long and the short of it is that Yao is sidelined again, and this time for 10 days. The worries are not over the missed time (10 days in the preseason is not a big deal at all). It's the fact that, once again, Yao is missing time. And it's not missed time from unrelated injuries. It's the same toe, again and again. This is a problem that Yao has had for two years.

Perhaps the first question this raises is whether Yao is still durable. For the first three years of his career, Yao missed two games in total. Now, a year and 27 missed games later, there a question. Just a whisper, but if he misses time in the season, then those whispers will come out in the open. And this quote from Yao's personal trainer, Keith Jones, will only make them louder:

When asked if Yao could have such problems as long as he plays basketball, Rockets trainer Keith Jones said: "It's possible. It's very possible.

And how tragic would it be for a guy like Yao, with an unquenchable will to work, and a great willingness to play through pain, to become just another guy who could have been so much better, but got overtaken by injuries. In every sport, in every league, you can name guys whose careers were interrupted, shortened, or even cancelled altogether because of their injuries. Perhaps the first NBA player to come to mind would be Bill Walton. How ironic would it be if Yao, who was hyped by Walton from the very beginning, would become like him?

However, below those concerns is the underlying question – did Yao bring this upon himself? There is a delicate balance for a professional athlete as to whether he should continue playing despite an injury, or to sit out to avoid aggravating it further. His doctor can advise and recommend, but the decision is ultimately in the player's hands. Throughout his career, Yao has been choosing to keep on playing, and has focused on the short-term, even though it hurt him in the long run. I find it so sad that Yao's career could be messed up because of a few decisions early in his career that were made with the best intentions, yet hurt him a lot later on.

Is this too doom and gloom? As a Yao fan, I am desperately hoping that I'm overreacting. 80 games a year, every year, is still possible in Yao's career, but right now it's looking a lot less likely than it was two years ago.

Shanghai vs. Fujian

2006-10-11T18:03:00.000+08:00

Since I could not watch the opener, I instead sat down to watch Shanghai play Fujian on Sunday night (that's like missing matchup between the Spurs and the Mavs, and having to settle for a Hawks-Knicks game). Both are mediocre, low-level teams, the kind that aren't bad enough so that they start a complete makeover, but not good enough to get into the playoffs and compete. Shanghai hasn't been in the playoffs since Yao left, and Fujian were only promoted from the CBL to the CBA two years ago, and they haven't been to the playoffs in either year. Neither team was exactly brimming with talent, either, as Liu Wei was the only national team player in the game, and neither team had any NBA prospects (not even potential prospects).

However, it was interesting to watch Yao's old club, and the difference in them from five years ago. As I said, no playoff appearances in the last five years, and not even one season at or above .500. They justed folded after Yao left, showing that they had no infrastructure around Yao. They were a complete failure as a franchise, which is somewhat of a shame, since Liu Wei is a great point guard, and they're wasting away his career (Kevin Garnett anyone?).

Anyway, the game wasn't exciting most of the way, as the Sharks led in double-digits most of the way. A late Fujian run cut it to 5, but they got no further. Liu Wei performed brilliantly with 20 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists. I was also mildly impressed with Shanghai 6'8" small forward Wang Yong. This 20-year old only shot 4-of-12, but he made three threes, and while he's not good enough (yet) to be a candidate for the national team, his size and ability to move and shoot was intriguing. Fujian's top scorers were both foreign players, but Yang Chao (6-3, shooting guard, 20 years old) caught my eye. While both Yang and Wang are not big prospects, they're merely guys who I'm adding to my radar, as they probably won't rise to the top, but still have a chance to.

Guangdong Tigers vs. Bayi Rockets

2006-10-10T22:06:00.000+08:00

I was extremely disappointed when real life imposed on Saturday night, meaning I could not see the opening game of the new CBA season. And what a game it was. This is NBA equivalent of the Spurs and the Mavs facing off in the season opener. It's even serious enough that Jonas Kazlauskas came along to see it.

Anyway, down to the game. To my complete un-surprise, Wang ZhiZhi and Yi Jianlian battled it out with each filling the stats sheet (if there were fantasy leagues for the CBA, their owners would be celebrating). Yi had 26 points and 15 rebounds, and Wang had 20 points, 11 rebounds, and 5 assists. From the stats and from the final score, you can see that Yi had the better of Wang. This confirmed by almost-sure conviction that Yi was better than Wang. Why is this important? Well, it's not really, but it proves that Yi is better than an NBA scrub, which is what Wang is. Minimum, Yi be playing on the active roster during his NBA career, unlike Wang who was on the injured reserve the majority of his playing days.

However, one thing I was somewhat surprised by was the play of Chen Jianghua. He missed all three shots, and had two turnovers in nine minutes. In a way, it was a surprise, because I know his talent is above almost everyone else, but then again, it's not so much of a surprise. A couple of weeks ago I said "Chen's playing style...rubs against the traditional guys." Guangdong is a championship team, and for the coach of Guangdong (Li Qun), to put someone like Chen into the lineup, who could disrupt their offense, lose and game, and therefore ruin their season (in a 28-game season, every game is important), would be suicidal. Their fans would murder him, the players would revolt, and the management would eventually fire him. So, he didn't risk it. Terrence Greene (one of the Tigers imported players) played 30 minutes and Liu Xiaoyu played 19.

That strategy by Li is very different from what Kazlauakas did with the national team. Kazlauskas, having coached the Lithuanian national team, knows how China needs to play and who they need to play to be able to compete in the big leagues. So, in the World Championships, he gave Chen a chance to prove himself, and he definitely did. Guangdong's coach did not. However, even if Chen's lack of play wasn't his fault, his zero points and two turnovers didn't do any good. Maybe Li Qun will never play him, but that type of game definitely won't help his cause.

Yao gearing up for the new season

2006-10-06T15:59:00.000+08:00

While Yi Jianlian and Guangdong are preparing to defend their title, and Wang ZhiZhi and Bayi are preparing to challenge them for it, halfway across the world, across the Pacific, Yao Ming is warming up, on a much, much bigger stage, for the biggest goal. That goal, according to a Chinese propagandist, would probably be "to bring glory to my homeland", but even for a patriot like Yao, that's not the goal. All the Rockets want something a lot simpler than glory and honor. Another season of domination individually, and a playoff berth for his team would suffice. And just about everyone thinks that, Yao and company will be able to accomplish that goal. However, their future after that is a bit blurry. 45% of the general public that view the Rockets official site think that Houston will win the championships and Tim Potvak agrees with them. However, barring homerism and blatant stupidity, the more conservative of the talking heads thinks that the Rockets will be playing their way to the second round.

But, speculations aside, the fact is that this team is much, much more talented than two 2004-2005 Rockets team. That team won 55 games, and was one more shot (or one less foul) away from making the second round. The squad is superior, in talent, in athleticism, in experience. In every basically. However, as everyone, including (and especially) the players realize that the team is built for now. Their top three players, besides Yao and Tracy, will consist of 2 30-year olds (Bonzi Wells and Rafer Alston), and a 28-year old (Shane Battier). Almost all of their important players are in their prime, which means in about three years this team won't be fit to beat a Euro team (some of whom appear to actually be pretty good, since one of them just beat the Sixers). Doubtless, Luther Head and Kirk Snyder will turn out to great young players, but they are hardly players you want as your best young prospects.

So, three years on, will the Rockets be in the rebuilding mode, as so many teams are, or will they be resting on their laurels after winning a championship (or two)? This is something only the players can decide. However, one big issue for this time, at least in the early part of the season will how the fit in. There are 10 new players for the Rockets, and there going to be several positional battles going on (Head and Snyder for time off the bench, Wells and Battier for starting position), and between good players, too, so doubtless, to determine who goes where in the rotation, Jeff Van Gundy will be experimenting with the starting lineups for the first weeks. Memories comes floating back of the mess the 04-05 Rockets got themselves into at the start of the season (6-11 start, and fully 35 games to get back over .500) . The Rockets are expected to be contenders with teams in the West like the Mavs, Sun, and Spurs, but they'll be digging themselves into a deep, deep hole by starting off badly, and then finishing the season with not home-court advantage.

However, it's not only players that have been added. To Yao's teammates, he appears to have added even more moves to his varied portfolio of post moves. This (very encouraging) quote from the Houston Chronicle:

The Rockets saw a reminder of the Yao who dominated the second half of last season as opposed to the Yao who limped through the first half.

Bonzi Wells spoke of how agile Yao appeared. Rafer Alston said Yao looked stronger. Shane Battier cited Yao's refined moves.

Tracy McGrady hit on all of the above.

"I see the difference in Yao each year," McGrady said. "He comes back stronger. He adds another few moves to his repertoire. He looks more comfortable. He looks more fluid. He definitely looks stronger on the post."

Yao has already post moves that everyone knows are coming, yet still can't stop. To be able to add more makes him...well, I think "best post player in the NBA" would be a good description.

Although some people have made a big deal about Yao playing too much during the off season for China, Yao himself has said that playing in the recent World Championships made him feel "fresh" and "in much better shape." Did that extra training and warm up make him stronger and more agile, as his teammates said. I think that probably is so. It appears that those who say being patriotic and playing for his country is bad for Yao have been proven wrong...again.

However, on the subject of the national team. YaoMania recently interviewed Yao, and the controversial subject of Chinese players going to Europe, he said:

I guess it will happen. But I hope it will happen before it’s too late. Some of the players are past the age where the player can improve, and have more experience than young players. Some players can still improve at 26 (years of age), 27, 30, but the earlier they come out the more help they can get. I believe maybe after the Olympics some will come out, but I hope it’s not too late. I hope the CBA and their owner can give them the best career they can have.

Key phrase: "after the Olympics." That is, the Olympics in 2008. Two years from now. If Yao is correct about this (and he usually is on matters about Chinese basketball), then by then Yi Jianlian will already be in Europe. For Chen Jianghua it might not be too late, but still, that's two years which could have been periods of growth and development for Chinese players. How often it is that China moves as a turtle, not the hare. Maybe the only consolation is that the race of basketball is unlimited, and someday, eventually, that turtle will catch the hare up and win the race.

Chinese news

2006-10-04T17:57:00.000+08:00

Has anyone heard of Shang Ping? Anyone outside his mom and dad? No, probably not, not until this article came out, anyway. Now, he's the first Chinese player since Ma Jian to play in NCAA Division I basketball. He has verbally commited to the Nebraska Cornhuskers (although I doubt he knows what that last word means). I don't think anyone in China has really seen him play, since, as this article says, he was in a prep school before, and before that in a high school in Auckland, New Zealand (of all places). I don't think anyone knew about him until just a few months ago. But I think we'll be hearing a lot about him from now on.

I would love to creat a Wikipedia article for him, but I don't think he's important enough to create an article. We'll see.
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Once more, it's just a little independent clause stuck on at the end that proves to be of vital importance. AsiaBasket reports on what the national team might be doing this next offseason. Just normal news, what everyone expects. But then, right at the end, they say that "they might attend [an] NBA summer league next year." They treat it as nothing, but I don't want to, because this is actually major news. Granted, summer leagues are hardly a good comparison to the NBA. But still, it would be very, very good competition for the Chinese team. A summer league is full of college players, good ones, so it's level might be even better than a Division I league. Plus, the Chinese players could play against some of the top rookies. Can you imagine Yi Jianlian getting to play against Greg Oden? Chen Jianghua against OJ Mayo? That would be the greatest thing possible for everyone involved. If this new schedule change for the CBA is final, then those who pull the strings should make sure to do everything in their power to make it happen.

CBA schedule

2006-09-29T19:12:00.000+08:00

The CBA has now announced their schedule. Just the dates:

October 7- First game (Guangdong vs. Bayi Rockets)
November 1- Play stops, and Asian Games preparations begin
December 22- Play in the CBA resumes
February 7- Regular season
Mid-April (I'm unsure of this last date)- CBA championships end

The first game of the new season will tipoff at 7:30 PM local time, and the two teams will be the finalists of last year- the Guangdong Southern Tigers, and the Bayi Rockets.This is going to be a highly rated, highly anticipated game for several reasons

1. Four years in a row (since Yao left the Sharks), the teams have met in the playoffs. In the 2002-03 season, Bayi defeated Guangdong in the finals. However, since then, the Tigers have beaten Bayi three straight times, including twice in the finals.

2. This is Chen Jianghua's first regular season game with the Tigers. For Guangdong fans and NBA scouts alike, this will be a game to watch. For fans, it will be excitement in seeing a very good player. For the scouts, it will be to see how well he fits in with his team. They already know how good he is, but how he fits in with his CBA team and the CBA style is a question yet to be answered.

3. The last, but most important, reason, is that, not only is it Wang ZhiZhi's first game back with Bayi, it is the first time ever that Yi Jianlian and Wang will face up against each other. Yi has been called a "Little Yao", and although his game isn't completely alike to either Yao's or Wang's, his playing style and skills are much more similar to Wang's. Yao is a true low-post center, whereas Yi and Wang are perimter-oriented. Wang plays as a shooting guard, as he plays mainly in the high post (something like a more athletic Brad Miller). Yi is similar, but he's more of a small forward, as he can post up as well.

However, Yi hasn't been compared to only Yao and Wang's playing styles. Maybe the main question being asked is, "Will Yi be a success or bust?" Yao is probably the best success story of any Chinese athlete (except for maybe Liu Xiang). Wang is probably China's biggest bust in a long time. Yao succeeded because he worked hard, and Wang failed (mostly) because of the opposite side -- laziness. Yi isn't the most harding working of guys, but he's not lazy...yet. So his future is hanging in the balance right now, and only he can decide what the outcome will be.

News from China

2006-09-28T21:17:00.000+08:00

After having the whole World Championships and junior Asian Championships to watch Chen Jianghua, Yao Ming comes out with (I believe) his first official opinion of Chen. Since this Sina.com article is obviously in Chinese, I would translate it roughly, but I think that pryuen does a better job here.

The article isn't only about Chen, as Yao says several other things (Wang ZhiZhi was crucial to the team, especially in the fourth quarter against Slovenia, Wang Shipeng was very courageous to take that buzzerbeater against Slovenia, and he was very apprehensive when he first came to the NBA), but the most important thing, about Chen, was that he was the first player of his kind in China, and therefore, his playing style is in direct conflict to his teammates, on the national team, and on his CBA team.

Once again, there's a clash of old vs. new. Chen's playing style is very NBA-like (in fact, it's probably the most NBA-like of anyone in China, excepting Yao). That rubs against the traditional guys, like Du Feng, Zhu Fangyu, Wang Shipeng, and so on. Those are the old-generation guys. There are only three Chinese players that are "new-generation" players -- Yao, Yi Jianlian, and Chen.Therefore, they're outnumbered, but with Yao on the team, and a good coach in Kazlauskas, they have a good chance of being promoted. It apperas that the new generation is, slowly but surely, winning out.
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It appears that the owner of Beijing Aoshen, Li Su, has a good eye for talent. Unfortunately for him, so does Jonas Kazlauskas. Already, two of Aoshen's best players, Sun Yue and Zhang Songtao, are going to miss the first half of the season to play in the December Asian Games. Now, it seems, a third player from Aoshen will be joining his teammates. Huo Nan, a shooting guard for Beijing, has caught the eye of Kazlauskas, and now he has been invited to training for the Asian Games. If he makes the team, it will mean that Beijing has three national team players, which makes them almost as good as Guangdong (five national team players, three starters).

Yao still a representative of China

2006-09-27T22:35:00.001+08:00

Henry Abbott posted a little blurb about how much Tracy McGrady has benefited from becoming Yao's teammate. The quote from T-Mac was a

A lot of these kids over here in Asia really look up to me and watch my every move. They can tell me stories of things I’ve done, and I don’t even remember it. But it is true. Those things really happened. I just didn’t remember them. So this response was a lot more than I expected. So that’s a great feeling, for them to really be following my every move.

A must for a country to be able to compete in a sport internationally is that their lowest level players, the amateurs, must really love the game. Then, the next highest level will get more players from the lower level, and get better. That will affect the next highest level, and go up and up until it reaches the pro level. This is true in China, as the youngsters out there are all lacing up and balling, copying T-Mac.

There are hundreds of kids that love the NBA, idolize their basketball heroes, and copy their every move. With that kind of devotion bordering on reverence, a rise in overall talent is a guarantee. This affect is also multiplied by many times when you have 1.3 billion people, and such a high percentage of them are playing basketball.

And yet, when I think over this, I also realize that the majority those in America don't realzie that any of this is going on, and this extends not only to basketball, but also to all areas of Chinese culture. (Everything I say from now on is going to be very blunt) Most Americans are, quit simply lazy. They are content to stay within their own circle, and not explore anything outside of it. This is the same among sports and basketball fans, and maybe even more so. Millions of middle-aged men not only stay within their own circle, they limit themselves even more by focus all their attention on only basketball. So when a guy from a very different, secluded culture (Yao) walks in on them, it's no suprise that they become very flustered. A lot of people (American-born Chinese, mostly) accused those same guys of racism, but 90% of it was merely ignorance.

Also, since Yao was about the only link to China for most American NBA fans, those fans represented the whole of China with Yao. So every move by Yao was thought of as a representation of the Chinese people. One thing Yao conveyed was the loyalty and thoughtfulness of the Chinese people. But one misstep from him, and all that good rep was gone.

More and more, as I look back on Yao's first season, I'm amazed that he was able to survive. Not only did he have to adjust to the NBA style of playing, not only did he have to adjust to the different culture, he also had to represent 1.2 billion Chinese people. How many people could do all that at once? Yao is certainly a unique player, and person.

But now Yao is no longer a rookie. It's his fourth season, and despite all he's done, so much more needs to be done. The reality is one person can't do it all. Fortunately for him, more Chinese athletes are coming onto the international scene, both in basketball, and in other sports. But still, Yao is the main focus of American media, and he realizes it. A recent function in Houston (more info here), he said "I wish I can be a good textbook not only limited to the basketball sports." And for four years, hasn't he done a great job being a "textbook"?

DraftExpress recapping the U-18 Asian Championships

2006-09-26T17:06:00.000+08:00

Draftexpress with a little scouting report of the recent junior Asian Championships. I suppose I should be put to shame, since they have such a detailed report of players other than Chen Jianghua, and I didn't. But I would really like to know how and where he watched those games, since I couldn't find them anywhere. Well, I suppose there are advantages to being a big site like that, with lots of contacts, while we amateurs work solo (and, in my case, toil in obscurity).

However, did you find anything familar in the report? How about this?

Chen operated at will on the court, as virtually no defender could keep up with his incredible quickness, excellent ball-handling skills and footwork.

Yep, that's right, I posted that almost two weeks ago (that was the post that shot me to fame by being mentioned by J.E. Skeets). Maybe I should be ashamed, but it's nice to know that I beat DraftExpress to the punch.

One thing I haven't mentioned, but have noticed is this:

He looked in love with his one-handed layups (he removes his left hand sooner than usual).

That's a bad habit that's hard to break. If he goes to the NBA, and still has that tendency, can't you just see Ben Wallace and Dwight Howard salivating over that? His shot will be swatted into the crowd the first time he tries it.

Of course, this article wasn't only about Chen, as they also mentioned Zhou Peng, Han Shuo, and Liu Xiaoxu. Since I really can't add anything to what they say, just take a look at the article.

This reminds me of one of my goals for this season- watch everyone of those guys, plus guys like Xie Libin, Huo Nan, and a few others guys. Sound familiar? Probably not, because I've never mentioned that, because I've never seen them play. Seeing them play internationally in the Junior World Championships would be great, but a CBA game would suffice. Seeing a game live and in person would be even better. Unfortunately, that's a very unlikely goal.

New News

2006-09-24T15:04:00.000+08:00

As you can see, the layout of my blog has changed slightly (although not too much). This is due to the fact that I have changed my blog from the regular Blogger to the new Beta Blogger. This application has a lot of new features, but I switched because of only two. The first enables you to put "labels" on your posts, or file them under topics. For example, this post is labeled under News. And on the right side, down the page, you can see each at a glance each label. Obviously, Yao Ming and Chen Jianghua are my most popular topics. The other new geature is the ability to edit your template much more easily. Instead of editing raw HTML code, you can now simply click and drag to move around your "page elements".

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As I was browsing my "cousin" site, Globetrotter, I came across a link to my "sister" site. You've got to respect the guy who does TaiwanHoops. Even if I knew enough about Taiwan basketball to do a blog about it (I don't), I probably wouldn't make one. The reason I made this blog was because China is on track to take over basketball, and people want to know about it. Taiwan isn't threatening to take over the basketball world anytime soon (unless it's absorbed by mainland China, which is very possible). So he's never going to get a lot of views, and will probably always work in obscurity. And, since it's related to my site, I can't help but to link it.
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I am now honored to say that if you google Chen Jianghua, I now appear on the second page. Apparently, all my hyping him up has paid off. Now if only it was the same on Yahoo...
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Speaking of googling, if I google my name, I get 56 hits, which is pretty cool, since before I started this blog I probably wouldn't have gotten any. However, the excitement wears off once I compare myself to J.E. Skeets or Henry Abbott.

Chinese Basketball Wikipedia Project: Closed (For now)

2006-09-23T10:11:00.000+08:00

There are a lot of WikiProjects on Wikipedia (Two of them that I'm involved in are WikiProject: China, and WikiProject: National Basketball Assocation). I never created an official page for WikiProject: Chinese Basketball, but nevertheless, it was a serious undertaking, and quite a job for one person. But a completely free weekend is what I've had (and still have, since it's not over yet), and I haven't wasted any time (unless you consider staying on the computer for hours on end "wasting time").

So, I think I can officially end this mini-project, as I've accomplished almost all of my goals, and have completed all the important ones.

I've expanded Sun Yue, done some major editing for Yao Ming (major as in an hour of editing), and also edited Yi Jianlian. Since all the major Chinese players have been edited to my liking, so I think I can call it quits on that project. However, I'll still be maintaining those pages (updating and so forth).

One more article I created was for Hu Weidong, who is probably the most famous pre-Yao Chinese player. However, it is merely a stub, since I don't know that much about him, and I'm hoping someone else will be able to come along and add more to it. I posted on YaoMingMania about it, but no changes have been made yet.

But I didn't limit my activities to just Chinese players. I was the first to add to Tracy McGrady a part about him getting married. I also added infoboxes to Ryan Bowen, Shane Battier, and Luther Head.

I know, I know I'm shamelessly flaunting my hard work. Alas, I have no shame. My user page gives a full account of my editing career, as well as a little bio (complete with a link to here, of course).

But on a competely unrelated note, I also twice added a piece of news for Natascha Kampusch. On one occasion, I added a news article fully 15 minutes after it was posted on the site. I think I'm getting pretty good at this Wikipedia game.

AsiaBasket and Arthur Volbert

2006-09-22T22:10:00.000+08:00

I am usually in agreement with Arthur Volbert about everything in Chinese basketball, but in this case, I am afraid that I directly disagree with what he said. On the main page of AsiaBasket, he said that he agreed "with the CBA, not Yao" about the CBA's schedule change.

He said a lot of things, but the main things were:

If the proper competition and training is provided this will indeed help the effort to get an Olympic Medal. Winning a medal in 2008 would be the best thing that could happen to the CBA.

Yes, it is important to find good opponents for overseas play. But the Chinese can offer marketing incentives for European teams to play them, even exhibitions played during the season with teams out of title contention.

Even inferior first division European teams use the European style of play. Playing against these teams will give China's best players experience in playing the more intense, physical style of international play.

Sending several teams to Europe will help show China which players are best in the international style. There may be some surprises and players might rise to National Team status who might otherwise be overlooked in favor of players better at the less physical Chinese style.

His main reasons for supporting the change was that even if the Euro leagues would be in full swing, China could offer "marketing incentives" to teams that were "out of title contention." I think that's, to be honest, a rather silly idea. No team would schedule an exhibition mid-season, even with "incentives" as part of the deal. Even if the Hawks or Knicks were out of the playoff race, they would still play all of the 82 games, and not schedule an extra game, "marketing incentives" and all. National teams, of course, would be out of the question, as each player would be on a different team, and no sane coach would allow his player to leave to play against China, barely a top-10 team in the world. Probably the only teams China would be able to play against would be some sort of junior national team, or Asian teams, neither of which would be really challenging. Plain, boring old drills certainly aren't any good for the team, as the players have been doing those all their lives.

And one thing I think Volbert failed to justify is the more practical aspect of it, something which Yao pointed out specifically.

The change is a setback for the 11-year-old league, which has made rapid improvement over the past two seasons. CBA has established a good image among the fans. I think many of them will be disappointed.

When a league is not well protected by long and stable rules, the sponsors will be at a loss as how to get the gain from their investment.

It is for sure that their interests have suffered a blow. A league can not progress smoothly without sponsors' involvement.

A good league won't, can't change so suddenly. That's what the CBA did, and it's a jolt to fans, players, and sponsors alike. As a still fledging league, a decline in popularity (which is what this will bring) could be very detrimental.

Assorted News from China

2006-09-21T19:05:00.000+08:00

1. During my daily scour of Youtube, I came across two new videos of Chen Jianghua. One is a compilation video of Chen in the recent Asian U-18 Championships. The second is another highlight video, this time of a single game, against South Korea in the finals. I would recommend the second over the first, as it's much clearer and has better quality.

However, I'm not really a fan of highlights videos (or mixtapes, or remixes, or whatever you call them), since they really do no more than inflate the value of the players, showing only their offensive strengths (mixtapes are never made about defensive plays. Can you imagine a blazing hip-hop jam accompanying a highlight video of Bruce Bowen and his defense? I can't). One thing you can see from the video is that Chen didn't really set the team up and play point guard. No 8 on their team, Han Shou, was actually the primary point guard for them. He's a big guard, at about 6'5, and he might go on to great things.

2. Before the World Championships, NBADraft.net listed Zhang Songtao as one of the Chinese "prospects to watch", along with Chen, Yi Jianlian, and Sun Yue. I haven't mentioned him before, and I think I should now. The WC were his debut with the senior national team, and he didn't get a lot of playing time behind Yao, Yi, and Wang ZhiZhi (three games, 8 minutes total). However, I think this is a guy to watch. For one thing, he's a "normal" basketball player. If I may say so, Yao, Yi, and Chen are all "abnormal in one way or another. Chen has amazing quickness, Yi is very athletic, and Yao, of course, is very tall. Zhang, on the other hand, is merely a normal 6-11, 250 center/power forward. He plays in the ABA (along with Sun), which is obviously not a top-level league, but it's certainly better than the CBA, and it's exposing him to the "American-style" of play, and the more physical play he's exposed to, the better.

3. Finally, an article posted more than a week ago by Marty Burns of SI.com addresses the issue of Chinese basketball. I didn't reference it, because it didn't really say anything new. However, on the second page, there is one interesting quote from Del Harris (who, if you've forgotten, coached China in the 2004 Olympics).

Harris argues that the '08 Games are important enough to China that it
would be for the benefit of all if the pro owners would allow [Chinese players to go to Europe].

"It is too bad that there is not enough national team spirit among the
owners and not enough knowledge within the political ranks to make this happen." Harris says. "China has players who could play at a nice level in Europe: Zhu (Fangyu), Yi, Du (Feng), both Wangs (Zhizhi and Shipeng), Liu (Wei), Li (Xiaoxu) and Sun (Yue). That is eight players plus Yao who are very good and would vastly improve by playing the best competition for 60-80 games in the season leading up to the '08 Olympics. It is that kind of competition that has closed the gap between the NBA players and the rest of the
world."

First, I find it kind of interesting that he mentions a player like Liu Xiaoxu, who has yet to make the national team, but not mention Chen (one more reason to go on proclaiming Chen's brilliance to the world right here).

Also, he says that "it would be for the benefit of all if pro owners" allowed top players to go to Europe. I agree with him there, but then, I still see the other side, and, realistically, the right side isn't going to win out. Take the Guangdong Southern Tigers. They're aiming for their fourth straight championship this year, but if Yi, Wang Shipeng, and Zhu Fangyu all left, their team would be gutted, and the would almost certainly not be champs once again.

However, according to Sinobball of interbasket.net, there will be one Chinese player in Europe next year. Mengke Bateer has attracted interest from a few European teams, so good luck to him. This is a great first step, and if he is successful in Europe, then maybe it will encourage those in China to send others over there as well. However, it is only a first step. Bateer isn't even on the national team, and even if he gets better (he's already over 30, so it's doubtful), it won't mean much to China. Sending young players over is crucial. And as good as this piece of news is, it doesn't accomplish that goal.

Stromile Swift- Stifled...or Lazy?

2006-09-19T14:19:00.000+08:00

Jonathan Feigen and Fran Blinebury co-op a blog on Chron.com, an excellent resource for Rockets fans, and as a fan of Yao, I am therefore a Rockets fan.

In a recent post, they talked about Stromile Swift, who has recently been a very controversial topic for Rockets fans.

Was he really an overhyped player, that deserved no more playing time than he got, or was his natural talent simply stifled by the Jeff Van Gundy and his peculiar (even unique) system of play?

The comments on this article were very ranged. Some said he was "D O N E" (emphasis not mine), and others said he was "good" or at least had "potential." However, the general consensus was that Stromile had the skills, but not the heart (or passion or dedication,).

The sad fact of the matter is that there are many, many guys who come from the dark ghetto, and get to the bright lights of the NBA only because they have more God-given talents than any of the other dudes from the hood. And once they get there, they quit. They stop working hard, and simply rest on their laurels and money (Swift- 5.4 million in the upcoming year).

Stromile is one of those average guys (for the NBA) who could have been so un-average. Basketball is a game of discipline from an early age, a game where you have to practice hours and hours to get to the top. Yao Ming has no talent, no natural talent anyway, but he made himself the best by practicing and working and practing and working and then practicing some more. Kobe Bryant is immensely talented, but 95% of that came from the hours and hours he spent on his game, and the even more hours he spent exercising, running, weightlifting. Stromile is not a Kobe or Yao. He's, quite bluntly, lazy.

So, what's next for Stromile? He's back to the same city again, after an unsuccessful venture for a year. Will he succeed, or will he, after his career, simply become on of those tall black guys who used to play in the pros? Frankly, he won't be. Some people said he had potential, but potential is no more than a chance to get better if you work hard. And unless Stromile changes very fast, his actions have shown that he simply refuses to work hard.