Yao Ming Slams “Slacking” Basketball Players of China After Asian Games Flop
Veteran basketball player Yao Ming slams “slacking” basketball players of China following their loss to Philippines in Asian Games 2023.
The former NBA legend didn’t hold back in his critique of China’s national basketball team, especially since they only managed to secure the bronze medal at the 19th Asian Games, held in their home country. It’s important to note that China’s chances at a gold medal were dashed when they suffered a loss to Gilas Pilipinas.
Their narrow escape with a 77-76 victory in the semifinals on October 4 allowed them to eventually claim the bronze medal by defeating Taiwan. However, Yao expressed dissatisfaction with the bronze medal outcome and labeled the Chinese team as lacking in effort.
Yao stated with bitterness when addressing the media, as reported by Xinhua news agency, “There are two types of slacking — one is the indisciplined kind and the other is wanting to eat your opponent in just one bite.” “This is also a type of slacking,” he added.
Ming, showing candor, acknowledged that there is now a “significant gap” between Team China and the basketball powerhouses in the world. He mentioned that they have already recognized this gap when comparing Team China to top teams from other regions, as conveyed by the NBA Hall of Famer to Asiad Daily.
“The pain comes from the huge gap between China’s basketball and world basketball,” he added, based on the article of South China Morning Post.
In addition to their Asian Games setback, China faced disappointment in their quest to qualify for the Paris Olympics. This disappointment stemmed from losing four out of five games in the FIBA World Cup, including their elimination by Gilas. Yao emphasized that China’s basketball community requires a “major overhaul” in order to secure qualification for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
“We have to conduct a major operation — this is not something that small tweaks will achieve. From the make-up of the national team to league reform, this is a major operation covering the entire basketball community,” said the current president of the Chinese Basketball Association.
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