ATL Constitution-Journal: The Asian Invasion (Yao)

Asian invasion

Rockets center's skill, personality capture the public's imagination

By JEFFREY DENBERG
Atlanta Journal-Constitution Staff Writer

YAO MING FILE:
Weight: 296 pounds
Shorts size: 44 with plus-3 inseam
Shoe size: 18
Father's height: 6 feet 7
Mother's height: 6 feet 3
Nickname: The Little Giant
Hit song (in Houston): It's a Ming Thing

NBA'S TALLEST:
Shawn Bradley, Dallas, 7-6
Yao Ming, Houston, 7-5
Ilgauskas Zydrunas, Cleveland, 7-3
Bruno Sundov, Boston, 7-2
Cezary Trybanski, Memphis, 7-2
Dikembe Mutombo, New Jersey, 7-2
Greg Ostertag, Utah, 7-2

FIVE TALLEST ALL-TIME:
Gheorghe Muresan, Washington, 7-7
Manute Bol, Washington, 7-6
Shawn Bradley, New Jersey, 7-6
Yao Ming, Houston, 7-5
Ralph Sampson, Houston, 7-4
Note: Listed with original team



Yao and Verne Troyer (Mini Me) sit next to one another on a plane, and after milking all the sight gags they can out of the pairing, each pulls out his laptop, a small screen for Yao and a giant screen for Troyer. Neither speaks.

"When I saw the finished product, I definitely enjoyed it. It was pretty funny," Yao said. "But the process of making it was very tiring. I had to sit there with lights on my face. It felt like I was right up against the sun."

That the 7-5 Yao Ming would have his own commercial three months after coming to play in the NBA for the Houston Rockets speaks to the startling success he has enjoyed as the most well-recognized No. 1 pick in years. He's even leading the Lakers' Shaquille O'Neal in the latest All-Star balloting for the Western Conference's starting center by 230,098 votes.

''I'm very honored,'' Yao said when he first took the lead over O'Neal earlier this month. ''If I do play in the All-Star game, I hope it won't be like my first NBA game was.''

However, Yao isn't some kid out of high school or some skinny forward a year out of college. This is a mature international player, one of the biggest ever to enter the NBA, certainly one of the few giants with skills and personality.

Turner Sports analyst Charles Barkley scoffed when Yao came up the top pick last June. No way some 7-5 Chinese guy could command such standing in the NBA. This was before the debacle of the World Championships in Indianapolis late last summer reminded us that Americans no longer dominate simply by throwing a ball on the court.

And Yao? A player whose name drew no recognition a year ago has accomplished things few international players and fewer American big men have managed. Like O'Neal, he has captured the public's imagination. Maybe his legend is in its infancy, but it is palpable and growing.

"Unlike almost all the big men who have played in our league going back to Kareem [Abdur-Jabbar], he has a personality," says Hawks executive vice president Lee Douglas. "Fans relate to players who have skills and show emotion. Who other than Shaq has had that? He's great for our game in terms of opening a giant new market for TV and endorsements to the NBA, in making friends for our games."

Very few international players have shown a personality in this country. Yao, though quiet and unwilling to speak more than a little English, has the potential to become a unique international hero, one who is comfortable with the idioms of the game and American life.

People were talking in Orlando about a play Wednesday night in which Yao put down a lefty hook against Shawn Kemp, drew a foul and responded with an audible "And one."

Said Douglas, "Talking to friends with the Rockets on the things about him that struck them, they believe he really has a much broader grasp of the [English] language than he will let us know at this point."

And who knows? That may apply to his game. Yao scored 17 with eight rebounds in a 101-82 win over the Hawks last month. He went for 23 points and 11 rebounds against Orlando Wednesday night, truly intimidating the Magic in the 91-81 win.

His average numbers to date: 13.3 points, 8.2 rebounds, .552 from the field, .795 from the line and almost two blocks per game, playing only 26.8 minutes a night.

Hawks center Theo Ratliff, who will spot Yao 7 inches and 66 pounds when they face off tonight, says this is only the beginning.

"He has everything it takes to be a great player,'' Ratliff said. ''He has the size, obviously. Maybe he's really 7-6 or 7-7. He has the tools -- a turnaround jumper, a nice hook. He has great footwork, fundamentals, basic skills. He can defend. He doesn't back away."

Ratliff says there is no reason Yao cannot in time rival O'Neal in skill, accomplishment and personality.

And early this season, Shaq took one look and offered. "Congratulations to Mr. Ming. He's done a lot for his country. He has all the tools. He can shoot. He can dribble. He's no slouch."

And at this point, maybe Rockets owner Leslie Alexander can get a little credibility after declaring Yao the "biggest individual sports story in the world."

Said Alexander, "There are two billion Asian people, and everybody's watching it. In two years, he'll be bigger than Michael [Jordan] ever was and bigger than Tiger [Woods]. I think he is going to be the No. 1 icon in the world."