I don't believe that in terms of stats or team leadership Yao is better than Hakeem at the same time in their careers. I'm not the stat expert but I would be curious to see a comparison. Yao isn't Hakeem though and part of the problem is the expectations, both positive and negative that were put on him. Yao is a phenomena and being such attracts both adulation and criticism. In many ways it was hard to see the middle ground when he came into the league. Certainly a lot of this had to do with that he was Chinese but I think most of it had to do with that he's a 7'-6" with a deft shooting touch and soft hands.
