Power Rankings: An angry Yao should make Rockets happy

Updated Dec. 11

Yao Ming is walking around with a very strange look on his face these days.

It's equal parts focus and determination, but with the stench of disappointment lingering around a Rockets team that didn't envision itself at .500 a quarter of the way into this season resonating, there's a sour nature in it, too. It's mean.

Watch out, Yao Ming is wearing a frown. (AP)

Yao looks angry. Yao is angry. Good for Yao. Great for Houston.

Bad for the rest of the NBA.

For years, Yao has been deemed too nice by critics, who have lumped his affable demeanor right up near the top of the list as to why he and Tracy McGrady haven't been able to get the Rockets out of the first round of the playoffs since joining forces. He's been called too passive, with some even citing his being brought up in the respectful Chinese culture as a drawback. He won't get in teammates faces. He won't instill fear in opponents. He's not passionate enough.

Flush all those theories down the drain.

"When you are soft yourself, everything will feel tough," Yao told the Houston Chronicle. "It's not because they are so tough. It's because of how soft we are. It's weird that we changed that quick. I never had that feeling. I feel like they traded me to another team, a new team I've never been on before."

Yao is well aware his team is underachieving and doesn't have to be Americanized to know that his team has come to rely on him for leadership. There's nothing more to sit back and absorb. He knows what to expect and what's expected of him, which is why losses to the likes of Philadelphia, even on the road, won't fly.

If the Rockets are to have the season they envisioned for themselves, things are going to have to start turning around. The schedule offers no aid. Sure, Houston gets to go home, but Detroit, Dallas and Orlando, three of the NBA's top teams thus far, won't go quietly. Tracy McGrady turned an ankle on Tuesday night, so it might be up to Yao to strap the team on his back and get it on the right track.

If so, at least he looks ready. That scowl he's wearing on his face should tell you so. He's already been ejected from a game once this month. For the Rockets sake, hopefully his displeasure results in leaving others doing the frowning.

The week's Power Rankings: