Considering this is Yabu's first season, this reaction is full circle and extra knee-jerky. We knew he was raw from the moment we drafted him. Last year confused us. But we did it to ourselves, believing in the CBA. We know the Chinese league isn't remotely a good league. This year has been a return to our original reaction. He is raw. And where I differ from some of criticism is that he isn't James Young. Sure, he doesn't know where he should be on offense because no one knows where he should be on offense. The league is asking bigs to do everything. Play inside and outside and in-between and pass and defend the rim and the pick and roll. I'm surprised Yabu has managed to see daylight with the amount of crap being thrown at him.
The thing we should take away from his season is that he is learning. He is becoming the role player that no one envisioned. He hustles. He passes. He is learning to pick his spots. In that first start against the Wizards, he really put things together in 18 minutes. Although Stevens isn't ready to trust this sporadic Frenchman just yet, I'm satisfied knowing what Ainge and brass saw when they drafted this project. Does it mean playing him over guys like Nader or Ojeleye, I don't care, as long as he learns the right way and can convert those lessons into deserving play next season, I think everything will be on track.
As for Ojeleye, I think he is working through some of the same things as Yabu but in a wildly different scenario. The difference is that he has to do in real minutes. Going out and learning from the big boys can shake your confidence, Ojeleye has managed to balance our earning Steven's trust and finding a way to improve. It is obvious that the team is asking him to follow the same suit as Smart. A road of extended minutes but never in the spotlight. Always the coal shoveler, never the conductor.