Shaqzilla

["hironaka@xxxxxxxxx"<hironaka@xxxxxxxxx>]

Here's a nice commentary by Chad Ford in ESPN Insider, 
courtesy of bdodgers' post on JB's list. Its another 
reason to dislike the Lakers, not that we need one.



Friday, January 10    Updated 10:17 AM EST 

Shaq under fire for Yao-bashing

by Chad Ford
Send an Email to Chad Ford

Shaquille O'Neal may be one of the most beloved figures 
in the NBA, but his recent verbal attacks on Chinese big 
man Yao Ming is starting to raise a troubling question -- 
is Shaq a racist?

Some feel Shaq's recent comments in his escalating war of 
words with Yao have crossed the line from trash talk to 
racial slurs.

AsianWeek columnist Irwin Tang recently called out O'Neal 
for several derogatory comments thrown in Yao's direction.

"Tell Yao Ming, 'ching-chong-yang-wah-ah-soh.' " O'Neal 
said to a reporter recently in a mock Chinese accent. 

When asked this summer how he would greet Yao, Shaq said 
his elbows would do the talking.

"Street," O'Neal said of what is awaiting Yao in the 
NBA. "Playing in a gym, shooting jumpers and all that ... 
that's fine. But I'm street. I'm how to take a 'bow to 
your nose and (make you) think about what I'm going to do 
next time down." 

Those aren't the only times Shaq has threatened Yao or 
mocked him for being Chinese. And Shaq isn't the only 
one. Charles Barkley has had his fun with Yao. Even the 
league itself has perpetuated stereotypes, including a 
recent Miami Heat promotional giveaway of 8,000 fortune 
cookies. 

Yao, ever the diplomat, has stayed above the fray. He has 
joked alongside Barkley, sparred a bit verbally with 
O'Neal and said he found the fortune cookie promotion 
amusing, even if the Chinese in China don't actually eat 
fortune cookies. 

Insider talked to several people close to O'Neal on 
Thursday. All of them were emphatic that O'Neal is not a 
racist. He was trying to be funny, they explained, and 
would never intentionally degrade someone because of 
their race. In fact, they were quick to point out, the 
NAACP recently honored O'Neal with its Young Leaders 
Award. 

But even if Shaq was simply trying to be funny, Tang 
thinks the NBA, and the media, are employing a double 
standard when it comes to Asians.

"Let's not beat around the bush," Tang writes. "If a 
white player had, for instance, made monkey sounds to 
taunt a black player, it would have been a national 
controversy. But Yao is Chinese and Asians are fair 
game ...

"Forgive my bitterness. I grew up in Texas, facing 
those 'ching-chong' taunts daily while teachers averted 
their ears. I love basketball, and when Yao was drafted 
by Houston, I had to suppress my excitement, lest he turn 
out a complete flop. I went to see the Rockets play the 
L.A. Clippers on Dec. 12. Yao is a huge young man with 
huge skills. But he's also a kid in a foreign land. You 
can tell by the way he carries himself when the ball is 
not in play. My heart goes out to Yao Ming. Yao Ming is 
our Asian Jackie Robinson, though he does not face the 
intensity of animosity Robinson faced. Unfortunately 
Shaquille O'Neal is the modern-day Ty Cobb, the rough-
playing baseball superstar who used the n-word about 
Robinson."

Tang is not the only one ruffled by Shaq's comments. I've 
received several reader e-mails over the last week about 
the issue. One long-time Insider reader wrote me Thursday 
to express his sadness over Shaq's comments: 

"If this is accurate, it is pretty reprehensible," he 
wrote. "Too bad Shaq did not attend the World Basketball 
Championships. He might have found it as culturally 
enlightening as the rest of us. I will never forget the 
vigor of the Argentinian crowd after Emanuel Ginobili 
dunked all over Russia, or the Chinese flag-waving, 4-
foot-10 Yao fan at the US-China game. ... At least Allen 
Iverson has seen the light. Yao is truly, 'A gift from 
god.' "

In a league that has been the model for integration for 
all ethnic groups, the issue shouldn't just be swept 
under the rug. Only Shaq knows what his true intentions 
are. But the thing about racial remarks is that the pain 
felt by those on the receiving end is very real, even 
when the intentions are benign. The NBA knows China, and 
its billion-plus potential fans, deserves better.

Ironically, the NBA announced the results of the latest 
All-Star voting numbers Wednesday, and Yao had widened 
his lead over Shaq for the starting center position on 
the Western Conference team. While some look on in 
dismay -- Brent Musburger reportedly lamented on ABC's 
Christmas Day broadcast that "the hordes of China" 
(another veiled slur?) might stuff the All-Star ballot 
box -- others will see it as a sign of hope. Hope that 
the borders that still demarcate the game will one day 
dissolve. Hope that the league will include the fans who 
follow the NBA faithfully throughout the world. Hope that 
there will come a day when we embrace players based on 
their level of skill and the content of their character, 
and not on the color of their skin. 

Tell Shaquille O'Neal to 'Come down to Chinatown'
Irwin Tang / Asian Week 
Yao widens lead on Shaq
Jonathan Feigen / Houston Chronicle 

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