Thursday, January 11, 2007 Sayson: Meeting Yao By Homer Sayson Secondovertime
CHICAGO - Near the door, on the leftmost corner of the Rockets' assigned locker room at the United Center, Yao Ming sat quietly, impervious to the noise and chaos around him.
Yao was garbed in black sweat pants and black sweat shirt. And his mammoth shoes immediately caught my attention. They were a pair of size 18 Reebooks, white as snow and big enough to stuff a laptop computer inside it.
A black brace, dangling with numerous velcro straps, hugged his injured right knee, while a pair of crutches rested just as quietly beside him. He looked sad, which is easy to understand. A bad fall against the Clippers last Dec. 23 broke his right tibia, rendering him out of commission until at least early February.
By most accounts, Yao is a gregarious giant, a media darling who constantly spits a stream of catchy phrases and funny one-liners. On this Monday night, however, Yao wasn't so eager to talk, and his mood seemed as salty as a bag of peanuts.
And when I approached him, he carried the look of a man whose molars were about to be removed by an amateur dentist. Still, Yao managed a polite nod after I formally introduced myself.
"How often do you have to wear this?" I asked while pointing at his knee braces. "All the time," he replied. "How are you doing?" I pried. He said "okay" but his face couldn't hide the frustration. Prior to the injury, he was having the best season of his five-year
NBA tenure (25.9 pts and 9.4 rebs per).
Since he wasn't in the active roster, Yao didn't really have to accommodate the media. He only traveled with the team to consult a Chicago doctor. While we were chatting, a Rockets security officer intervened. He was a big and tall, a black guy dressed neatly in a suit and tie. He hollered, "You ready to go now?"
Yao shook his head slightly, and with that gesture Yao was immediately circled around by a 7-man gang of Chinese reporters. Two had video cameras, three had tape recorders while another pair scribbled hurriedly in their notepads.
I remained among the pile. But I have ceased asking questions. At that point, I began to regret why I took Spanish elective in college. I should have studied Mandarin Chinese.
While waiting for Tracy McGrady to emerge from the showers, I lingered near Yao, hoping for a photo-op. I asked a Rockets PR staff member about it and he said it was alright to do it outside. "But I can't make him stop," the PR person added.
I stood dwarfed beside Yao as he waited for a golf cart to roll near the edge of the locker room door. A photo was snapped, but it didn't turn out to be a clear take. The blazing lights of TV cameras ruined the clarity, and that explains why the picture with Yao beside this column doesn't include yours truly.
We had awful weather here in Chicago two days ago. The skies were dark and gloomy, the grounds wet and perilous from Sunday's rain. The winds blew with some measure of anger. And the air was cold as a woman's heart.
I thought of not going to the United Center on that woeful Monday night. And though I didn't get to meet Yao the quote machine, talking to him, and being around him, was still quite an experience. He truly is a 7-foot-6 marvel.
Yao Trivia. I met Wang Meng at the press box during the Bulls-Rockets game. He works for Titan Media in China and he follows Yao everywhere. I grilled Weng like a seasoned homicide detective and here's what I uncovered.
Yao no longer depends on other people for a ride. He now drives his own car, an Infiniti QX560, which costs around $70,000. Yao also has a BMW 745 in a Houston garage. Of course, both wheels are custom-made.
Wang says the Chinese government no longer takes half of Yao's NBA salary. "That was only for his rookie contract," he explained. Besides his NBA pay, Yao is raking tons of dough from endorsements, especially Reebok and McDonalds.
Yao has a girlfriend. They have dated for six years now. Her name is Ye Li and she is a student at the University of Houston.
Yao's parents—6-foot-7 Yao Zhiyuan and 6-foot-3 Fengdi Fang—live with him in Houston. And when he's not wearing sneakers, Yao likes to don a pair of custom-made Timberlands. He also has a few for formal events. (homsay@hotmail.com)
