jorgelito

You know, there is a "NBA" camp for 7-footers under the age of 21 in China. Numerically, there is a fair amount ( a few dozen), I mean it does make sense probability wise. What they really need is a dynamic point-guard with "game" to come out. They are definitely working on it as b-ball is THE urban sport (football or soccer of course, is still the most popular)in China.

Nike has invested in playgrounds to encourage players to develop their "street skills". A lot of Chinese talent has been stifled by stiff, regimented sports academy style training. The main areas of focus: conditioning, mental, and creativity. The last one is clutch.

China had a huge dunk-slam contest last summer that went over very well.

The youth are catching on. By the way, Yao Ming is NOT the favorite player per se. As a measure of national pride, yes, Yao is very important to the Chinese (symbolically) but on an individual level (key word, individual) the most popular players are Vince Carter (this may have changed), Kobe Bryant, and Allen Iverson. Tracy McGrady is now popular in China. I will post an analysis/explanation if anyone is curious why.

China has quite a few prospects coming out in the next few years. All very young and most over 7-feet tall! (yikes!) Many have NBA potential. Potential. It needs to be nurtured and developed. That is why they are starting to be sent here, to work on their game.

Incidentally, Taiwan has a couple of "worthy" players that may, may break through. Sean Chen may have one last shot, a long shot, but there could be others. The advantage is they play a lot with foreign players and are more in tune with "Western" culture (necessary for the mental and creative aspects of the game).

On Yao, you know, I still can't decide if he's great or not. I mean, I like him, I'm a fan but admittredly, I'm a bit underwhelmed. What am I missing? MAybe I should stop comparing him to Shaq and Amare etc. But when you think about it and look at the numbers, he's really not that bad. He's only the beginning, you heard it here first on the TFP folks! If that Sun Ming Ming kid can "dance" like Shaq, rebound like Wallace, block like TDuncan AND make his free throws...

Personally, I think Yao needs to shave his head, get some tatoos, grow a goatee, form a posse/entourage (maybe the axe gang from Kung Fu Hustle is available) put out a rap album and maybe have a brush with the law. Then, he needs to eat more McDonald's. I mean a lot more. Maybe then, he'll "fit in". I'm thinking maybe a body slam of Dampier would have "sent a message". Whatever that means LOL!

We're all basketball lovers here and can see that it indeed transends race, nationality, ethnicity etc.

I love this game!