| Yao Looking Forward To A Rest Authored by Leigh Ellis - August 8, 2008 - 2:11 pm
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Perhaps Yao is hoping for an Olympic fairytale send off of capturing a gold medal in front of his home fans. Certainly such an achievement couldn’t be topped at international level.
Highly respected among China’s sporting fraternity, Yao had the honor of carrying his countries' flag during the opening ceremony at the 2004 Olympics in Athens and is rumored to be a candidate to light the cauldron to mark the beginning of this month's historic games in his native land.
It’s not like he needs any extra attention. His sky-scraping 7’6” frame makes him easy to identify and most sports fans already recognize Yao because of his presence in the NBA.
His statement is interesting nonetheless, as much for its timing as it is for its meaning. It appears to carry a subtle, underlying message. Regardless of what happens at these games, Yao wants, and desperately needs a break from basketball.
Yao is a gentle giant in the truest sense. Always polite and well-mannered, he is incredibly even-tempered given the many demands and requests asked of him, most of which he happily accepts. But now it’s time for the big man to take a well earned rest.
A rest from the game, from his country and from everyone - as barely a day goes by without Yao being asked to do something for someone - is greatly needed.
At 27 years old, he has played six seasons in the NBA, all for the Houston Rockets. However, only twice – in his first two seasons – has Yao actually played in all 82 regular season games.
Three seasons ago, he suffered a toe infection that caused him to miss 21 games. In 2006-07, he broke his right tibia and missed 34 games, and this season it was a stress fracture in his left foot that forced him to sit out Houston’s final 27 regular season and their six playoff games.
The nature of his injuries and the length of time he has missed suggest that his body is beginning to buckle.
Unlike China’s most famous landmark, The Great Wall, which has remained staunch for centuries through all kinds of trying conditions, Yao’s body is made of normal human flesh, and therefore is more fallible when constantly pushed to the limit.
Yao’s NBA averages are an impressive 19 points and 9 rebounds per game, easily justifying Houston’s faith in selecting him with the first pick of the 2002 draft.
However, postseason success continues to elude him and the Rockets, as they have yet make a serious challenge for the NBA title.
If Houston is going to have any chance of winning it all they'll need Yao to be healthy. Along with teammate Tracy McGrady, Yao not only needs to be fit for the entire regular season, but also for as many as twenty playoff games.
That is a lot to expect from Yao, to play about 100 games a season, considering he hasn’t been able to play even 60 in recent years.
When Houston drafted him, they understood that there was an element of risk. Not only did Yao have to learn the NBA game, he also had to learn a new language and culture of the city and team.
Furthermore, Chinese authorities are notorious for keeping a tight reign on their athletes and to them Yao’s first and most important responsibility is always to his country. Playing in the NBA is a privilege, but when his country calls, he is expected to answer without question.
The current relationship between the Rockets and China’s basketball association is probably best described as ‘tolerant’. After each injury that Yao has suffered, it seems that the doctors in Houston always prescribe a longer, slower recovery time than their Chinese counterparts.
Either way, Yao’s body is struggling to cope with the massive demands placed on it by both his club and country.
Few athletes at the Beijing’s Games will have greater expectations placed on them than Yao. Not only does he carry the hopes of China’s basketball team in their unlikely quest to win a gold medal, but he is also looked upon as an iconic figure that may be able to bridge the still uneasy gap between the fiercely private government of his country and the rest of the world.
China is a country of traditions dating back thousands of years and its intriguing history attracts millions of visitors and tourists every year. Yet there is still awkwardness when it comes to the Chinese government's continued controlling nature and its human rights records.
But those issues are for another time.
For now, these Olympics are China’s coming out party and they are keen to show the world that they can let their hair down as well as anyone else.
Hopefully for Yao Ming, he’ll be able to enjoy it.
For more, email Leigh: thedailyhurt@hotmail.com or check out: http://thedailyhurt.blogspot.com/ |
