Between bites of an overstuffed sub sandwich that looked pedestrian in the hands of the 7-foot-6 inch Yao Ming, the Houston Rockets center struggled to summarize the scrutiny that comes with having a country of 1.3 billion people follow his every move.
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"It’s a lot of pressure, of course,” said Yao, who leads his Rockets into the Ford Center tonight to face the Thunder. "Obviously, you don’t want to show them something bad in public. I try to keep it simple. Just play basketball on the court, and off the court, I still live my normal life as a person.”
That’s no small task when you’re the NBA’s ambassador to China and viewed as a larger-than-life hero in your native land. It’s a weight Yao has carried since the Rockets selected him No. 1 overall in the 2002 draft.
The pressures Yao faces — fueled in part by his gigantic stature, exceptional talents and historical selection as the first international player to go No. 1 overall despite never playing college basketball in the U.S. — are unknown to any NBA star, past or present.
Add the watchful eyes of the world’s most populated nation, and the load becomes almost unbearable.
"But I don’t notice it on him,” said Rockets coach Rick Adelman. "You see it in all the things that surround him, and you really appreciate what he’s going through. The demands on him are probably twice what it is on other players just because of his worldwide exposure. But he handles it about as well as anyone can handle it.”
That’s because Yao doesn’t take his ambassador status lightly. He knows his responsibilities extend far beyond the game of basketball, the Rockets and even the NBA.
In China, he’s a source of pride among his people. In the U.S., he represents everything about his homeland, understanding that each of his actions could potentially shape Americans’ perceptions about Chinese culture.
"They don’t just look at you based on how you play basketball,” Yao said of his followers, both stateside and abroad. "There are many, many great basketball players in the world that play in this league. They also want to know how Chinese people carry themselves. So sometimes you have to be very, very careful.”
Yao has helped the Rockets become one of the biggest draws in the NBA. Houston has ranked outside of the top 10 in road attendance only once since Yao’s rookie season. His impact is also seen in the Toyota Center, where much of the arena’s scorer’s table signage is in Chinese.
Because of Yao, four Rockets players — Luis Scola, Dikembe Mutombo, Ron Artest and Shane Battier — have Chinese shoe deals. Chuck Hayes recently switched to Nike, and recently traded guard Steve Francis also had a Chinese shoe endorsement.
Between six and eight journalists have moved to Houston from China just to cover each Rockets home game, according to Nelson Luis, director of media relations for the Rockets. It’s forced Yao to conduct two interview sessions, sometimes as many as three times a day, for English-speaking media and Chinese-speaking media.
The scrutiny initially overwhelmed Yao, according to Wang Meng, a Chinese journalist who covers Yao and the Rockets for Beijing-based Titan Sports.
"At the beginning, when someone would criticize him or say good things about him, his emotions would be influenced by it,” said Meng, who’s better known in Houston by his nickname, "Rock.” "But now he doesn’t care about those things. He once told me, ‘If 1,000 people are watching you, they’re going to come away with 1,000 conclusions.’ He knows now that people have different opinions, and he cannot try to make everybody happy.”
Yao said he’s managed to be a good ambassador simply by being himself, a gentle giant who many describe as a jovial yet respectful player who’s exceptionally gracious with his time.
"I don’t try to make up or do something to make people think that’s what Chinese people do,” Yao said. "Everything I’ve done and everything I will do in the future is just what I like to do.”
After swallowing the last bite of his sub and tossing the plastic wrap into a nearby wastebasket, Yao finally settled on the right words in explaining the pressure that emits from his international spotlight.
"I can’t let them down,” he said.
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Very nice article, Darnell. Were it not for a B Roy shot from heaven Yao would have beat us at the Rose Garden this year on huge 3 point play. Took my younger son to see him soundly beat the "Jailblazers" in 2003 for his 25th birthday and that is a fond memory. Yao and Arvidas Sabonis are the two biggest dudes I have ever seen!! Shaq a close third. He is extremely gracious and patient and has been totally accesible to the local media whenever he has been to the Rose City. Good guy. Again, thanks for the article, DM.
Very nice article, Darnell. Were it not for a B Roy shot from heaven Yao would have beat us at the Rose Garden this year on huge 3 point play. Took my younger son to see him soundly beat the "Jailblazers" in 2003 for his 25th birthday and that is a fond memory. Yao and Arvidas Sabonis are the two biggest dudes I have ever seen!! Shaq a close third. He is extremely gracious and patient and has been totally accesible to the local media whenever he has been to the Rose City. Good guy. Again, thanks for the article, DM.
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Rockets at Thunder →When: 7 tonight
→Where: Ford Center
→TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma (Cox 37)
→Radio: WWLS 98.1-FM, WWLS 640-AM
Three things to know
→The Rockets snapped a three-game losing streak Wednesday with a four-point road win against Boston.
→Houston’s 94.1 points allowed per game is seventh best in the league.
→Tonight’s game is the last of a five-game road trip for the Rockets.
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