Recently, some people reported in their real names that Yao Ming, chairman of the Chinese Basketball Association, accepted a bribe of 500,000 yuan from former head coach of the Chinese women's basketball team Xu Limin after the Rio Olympics to make him take up the post of head coach of the Chinese women's basketball team.
This report has aroused widespread attention and discussion in the fan circle. As a heavyweight in Chinese basketball, Yao Ming's image and reputation have been questioned. However, the reaction of the General Directorate of Sports was unexpected – they did not believe the allegation. What exactly happened? Why did the General Administration of Sports defend Yao Ming so firmly? What kind of deep logic is hidden behind this?
The General Administration of Sports officially responded: I believe that Yao Ming is innocent
It is reported that in response to the report, the General Administration of Sports convened a special meeting of the relevant persons in charge of the Chinese Basketball Association. At the meeting, the leader of the General Administration of Sports directly said to the whistleblower: "You go play, we don't believe it!" The response was very tough and direct.
The reason for this attitude is mainly due to two considerations:
First of all, judging from Yao Ming's own background, he is obviously not a person who would sell his principles for a mere 500,000 yuan. After retiring as an NBA star, Yao Ming resolutely gave up many business opportunities and took the initiative to devote himself to the development of Chinese basketball, serving as the chairman of the Basketball Association and devoting a lot of effort.
According to statistics, only after serving as the chairman of the Basketball Association, Yao Ming gave up tens of millions of yuan in endorsement fee income and invested all of it in basketball youth training and other fields. In comparison, the so-called "bribe" of 500,000 yuan is really insignificant. As the General Administration of Sports said, for Yao Ming, this is like an ordinary person facing 5 yuan, and he will not be tempted at all.
Secondly, Yao Ming's reputation and credibility in the basketball world are also unquestionable. As one of the greatest stars in the history of Chinese basketball, he has always been regarded as an upright and decent figure. Even as a player, there was never any negative press about him being corrupt or taking bribes. He regards the development of Chinese basketball as his own responsibility, and has been adhering to the concept of service and giving back for many years. The leaders of the General Administration of Sports are obviously well aware of this, so they can't believe the claim that "Yao Ming is corrupt".
All in all, as a leading figure in Chinese basketball, Yao Ming's character and ethics obviously have enough weight in the hearts of the leaders of the General Administration of Sports. They firmly believe that Yao Ming will not lose his principles and credibility for a trivial sum of money, let alone do such a thing that is contrary to his consistent image. Therefore, on this issue, the General Administration of Sports did not hesitate to stand on Yao Ming's side.
The root cause of the lagging development of Chinese basketball
However, even if the General Administration of Sports defends Yao Ming so much, it cannot hide the current sluggish performance of the Chinese men's basketball team in the international arena. This is undoubtedly an indisputable fact. The main reasons are as follows:
The first is the problem of being out of touch with the pace of world basketball development. In the past, the Chinese men's basketball team once had three "mobile Great Walls", which caused a lot of pressure on opponents in the international arena. But now, with the rapid development of world basketball, the characteristic advantages of the Chinese men's basketball team have gradually disappeared. Despite being led by a superstar like Yao Ming, the overall strength has always been difficult to compete with the world's strongest teams.
The second is the reduction of opportunities for foreign exchange. In the past, the Chinese men's basketball team also had important international exchange events such as the Stankovic Cup, which was able to compete with European powerhouses. However, in recent years, due to the impact of the epidemic and other factors, these international competitions have become fewer and fewer, and the number of Chinese players playing with the world's top teams has also been greatly reduced. This has undoubtedly slowed down their growth and hindered the progress of the entire team.
Again, the weakness of the youth training force. In the past, the success of the Chinese men's basketball team largely depended on the generation of players who practiced independently. But nowadays more and more players are more inclined to be passive in training, lacking initiative and fighting spirit. This "passive" training model is destined to fail to cultivate more excellent players with international standards.
To sum up, the root cause of the long-term inability of the Chinese men's basketball team to break through the bottleneck is not due to Yao Ming's personal corruption, but the existence of many problems and deficiencies in the development model and system of Chinese basketball itself.
Reform and innovation are the key to the take-off of Chinese basketball
In order for the Chinese men's basketball team to return to the top, these problems need to be fundamentally solved. It takes the whole basketball community to work together, not just one person.
First of all, we must take the initiative to catch up with the pace of world basketball development and constantly promote the overall improvement of our own technical and tactical level. This requires not only the efforts of the players themselves, but also the unremitting exploration and innovation of the coaching team. We should learn from the advanced experience of the world's basketball powers and find a new development direction for Chinese basketball.
Secondly, it is necessary to greatly increase the exchange opportunities between the Chinese men's basketball team and international teams. Whether it is through regular friendly matches or participating in more top international competitions, only by constantly competing with the world's strongest players can Chinese players get real experience and growth. This requires strong support from the Basketball Association and relevant departments to create more foreign exchange platforms for the national team.
Thirdly, it is necessary to start from youth training, reform the training model, and stimulate the initiative and fighting spirit of young players. We must abandon the passive indoctrination training method of the past, and instead adopt individualized training that teaches students according to their aptitude and is different from each other. By stimulating the internal motivation of players, cultivating their innovative thinking and independent awareness, more outstanding talents will continue to emerge.
Only by fundamentally solving the deep-seated problems in the development of Chinese basketball can we truly achieve the goal of the men's basketball team returning to the top. This requires the joint efforts of all basketball people, and more importantly, far-sighted reform and innovation. Only by working together and forging ahead, the future of Chinese basketball will be brighter.
All in all, this incident not only led to the controversy of Yao Ming's personal image, but also highlighted the many problems in the overall development of Chinese basketball. However, the General Administration of Sports' firm posture of maintaining Yao Ming's upright image has undoubtedly given a strong signal to the whole Chinese basketball community - as long as we work together and conform to the trend of the times, we will definitely make China's basketball cause create more brilliance. Let's work together for it!