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The Tao of Yao

How good is the NBA's next Chinese import?

(Continued from Page 1)

Ironically, the difficulty in getting to the NBA may wind up being Yao's greatest asset. The idea of returning to a nation of empty arenas, all-controlling coaches, and indentured servitude in anything less than triumph will surely motivate him to improve and get stronger. Compared to that, ritual abuse at the hands of Shaq, Duncan, and Garnett is penny candy indeed.

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Robert Weintraub is the author of The Victory Season: The End of World II and the Birth of Baseball’s Golden Age.

Photograph of Yao Ming by Sue Ogrocki/Reuters.