"The Sharks are the first center in the West and I'm the second center in the West" - Eric Dampier
Tempier of the Warriors
In 2002, Yao Ming, a Chinese player, landed in the NBA as a champion, and then once faced doubts and ridicule. However, Yao Ming responded with strength one by one, and finally fully established his position in the NBA. Yao Ming's growth also won the respect of his opponents, the biggest of which was O'Neill's recognition of Yao Ming, and O'Neill's blunt statement that Yao Ming was his brother.
Yao Ming and O'Neill
Before the first showdown between the two, the media vigorously hyped up the first confrontation between the two, as O'Neill, who ruled the league for many years, decided to teach this new center a lesson, so there was the first "Yao Shark Showdown". At that time, when Dayao, who was the champion, faced O'Neal for the first time, he won two doubles plus 6 big hats. After the game, the sharks gave the Chinese little giants a very high evaluation. "He was the first guy to cap me 5 times and he was really tall, like a giant." O'Neill said, "He was the first guy to be able to turn around and look me in the eye and jump in front of me. O'Neill's use of two first shows Yao Ming's dominance at both ends of the offensive and defensive ends.
Then there are people who ignore Yao Ming's strength and performance, and some people have said to the media that he is the second center in the West (of course, in the NBA at that time, no one dared to ignore O'Neal in the Lakers and claimed to be the first center in the West). This man is Dampier. If Dampier was a stunned rookie at the time, saying this sentence, everyone may think that young people do not understand things, and the young man has not grown up yet! However, at this time, Dampier was already a veteran of the Alliance for 6 years. A reporter asked him how to see Yao Ming and Stoudemire, and the response given by Dampier was that they were rookies, directly ignoring and not making comparisons! So in the 2004 playoffs, when the Mavericks played against the Houston Rockets, Yao Ming blasted out 14 shots and 13 shots, although this round of playoffs rockets lost to the Mavericks, but Yao Ming's data is to crush Dampier, let's take a look, Danpil averages 7.0 points, rebounds 7.5, assists 0.5, blocks 1.4, steals 0.5, shooting rate of 59.7%, Yao Ming's series averaged 21.4 points, 7.7 rebounds, 0.7 assists, 2.7 blocks, 0.3 steals, and 65.5 percent shooting, before being scored 40 points and 16 rebounds by Amar'e Stoudemire against the Phoenix Suns.
Yao Ming and Dampier confront each other
Stoudemire during the solar period is one on the right
Since then, Xiao Si and Yao Ming have seen him explode once since then, and Dampier has completely become the laughing stock of the fans.
He played in 72 games for the Pacers in his rookie season, averaging 5.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, 0.6 assists and 1 block per game, shooting 39 percent from the field and averaging just 14.6 minutes per game.
After the Pacers had a not-so-brilliant rookie season, in 1997, he was traded to the Warriors, where he played for seven years, and spent most of his Warriors career as the team's starting center, but the average per game was maintained at the level of 8+6, which was not satisfactory, and it was not the strength of the team's starting center at all.
However, Dampier broke out in his contract year, and the 2003-04 season was Dampier's contract season, playing a career masterpiece, averaging 12.3 points, 12 rebounds and 1.85 blocks per game, shooting 53.5% from the field, rebounding rate as high as 20.8%, including 16.5% offensive rebounding rate, 25.5% defensive rebounding rate, rebounding efficiency and individual average offensive rebounds per game ranking first in the league.
Fast forward to 2004, the previous year's fame of Dampier to join the Mavericks for 7 years 73 million first signed and then replaced, Mavericks owner Cuban of course not to look at Dampier's average of 12.3 points per game, but to his defense. Typically a power center, second only to O'Neal and Ben Wallace, The Personal Bench press record is second only to O'Neal and Ben Wallace, Dampier is a good rebounder with long arms, his rebounding mostly relies on solid card positions and excellent predictions, pure discussion confrontation, Dampier also has the upper hand in dialogue with other centers in the league. In his first season with the Mavericks, Dampier made 59 appearances, including 56 starts, averaging 9.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 1.85 blocks per game.
Tempier of the Maverick period
DanPier, who took a big contract and sat in the starting center, seemed to feel that he had reached the peak of his career, and unashamedly called himself the 'second center in the West', at that time O'Neal was definitely recognized as the first center in the West, averaging 22.9 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 60% shooting percentage per game, but the third-year rookies Yao Ming and Stoudemire also had 18.3 points, 8.4 rebounds and 26 points and 8.9 rebounds per game, which was completely crushing Dampier, probably for the attention of the bo people. It is also possible to make a large contract for the contract year.
In 2011, Dampier joined the Heat at the end of the year, hoping to win a championship ring lying at the end of his career, but the heat's opponent in the 2011 Finals was the old owner Mavericks, the Mavericks without Dampier seemed to have played chicken blood, the super god Nowitzki exploded the newly formed Heat Big Three, the Mavericks won the championship, the driver was elected FMVP, and then Dampier went to the Eagles for a year, and then retired,' The Second Center of the West's career has come to an end, and it seems that his remarks are far more interesting than his career.
Dampier defends Yao Ming
Dampier 16 years of NBA career played for 5 teams, the peak of the handover of 12 + 12 double-double data, no matter from the time of the battle, peak data, is definitely a qualified NBA role player, perhaps because of the arrival of a large contract and caused by the change of mentality ruined the player who could have been a better career, Dampier career of nearly 100 million US dollars salary is also considered a winner in life, after all, there are so many perfect endings. But the second center's remarks also became the biggest news and slot in Dampier's career.