Cuttino Mobley Laments 2003 Rockets’ “Ugly” Offense, Reveals How Yao Ming Could Have Played Like Nikola Jokic

Yao Ming was one of the most unique big men the NBA has ever seen. He had the size to dominate in the post, the touch to knock down mid-range shots, and the footwork of a much smaller player. What often goes unmentioned, though, is how good of a passer he was.

That part of his game never really got the spotlight it deserved. Cuttino Mobley, who played alongside Yao in Houston, recently opened up about that on All The Smoke with Matt Barnes.

Mobley said that Yao had the potential to play like Nikola Jokic. He could score, but he could also pass and do it effectively. “What people don’t understand about Yao, he can pass the ball like Joker. He could have done that. It’s just our offense didn’t…If he had Rick Adelman, for a fact, you’d have seen more of Yao,” Mobley said.

Mobley said the Rockets ran a possession-based, gritty style of offense. They’d slow the game down, grind out buckets, and weren’t creative or fluid on that end of the floor. Mobley wasn’t in favor of that approach. He believes that offense isn’t about thinking a lot; a good offense has fluidity in its movements.

While Mobley had his issues with the team’s offense, he was very proud of the group, especially Ming. He boasted about the 7’6 giant blocking Shaquille O’Neal’s two shots in their first matchup. Even early in his career, Yao showed signs of being a two-way monster. He also bragged about the Rockets’ defense before circling back to the problem with their offense.

“We were third in the history of NBA defense efficiency. We were stopping everybody. But the only thing is, is that the coach would stop us on the offense. Instead of letting us play on offense, he played kind of like that Pat Riley back in the day, possession ball…We’re gonna make this ugly,” Mobley said.

Mobley believes they could’ve unlocked an entirely different version of Yao, one closer to what we see in Jokic today. Even though things didn’t go the way he would’ve wanted, Ming still had a Hall of Fame career. But as Mobley suggests, it could’ve been even more special if the Rockets had fully tapped into his playmaking ability.