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Yao Ming (姚明, pinyin:Yáo Míng, born September 12, 1980 in Shanghai, China) is a popular professional Chinese basketball player. He currently plays center for the Houston Rockets in the National Basketball Association.
Among basketball's tallest players at a listed height of 7 feet, 6 inches (2.29 m), Yao debuted in the Chinese Basketball Association as a presumably shorter 17-year old. He put together a solid year for a young player, scoring 10 points and grabbing 9 rebounds a game in 1997-98. Missing a lot of the following season to injury, he returned in 1999-2000 with 21 points, a league-best 14 rebounds, and over 5 blocks per game. The 2000-01 season proved highly fruitful for Yao, as he became MVP of the league at the age of 20 with a fantastic year, scoring 27 points and grabbing an exceptional 19 rebounds per game.
He played well in the Sydney 2000 Summer Olympics and had been a veteran of international competition for several years already, but it was his MVP selection that put him in the minds of NBA scouts. However, after the CBA assured him that he would not get released from their league if he entered the draft, Yao chose not to enter the 2001 NBA Draft. This proved to be a good decison, as he played even better in 2001-2002, scoring 32 points and grabbing 19 rebounds per game with a 72% field goal percentage, second in the league in both points and rebounds per game. He won a sportsmanship award and, more importantly, led his team, the Shanghai Sharks, to a CBA title. He was even more dominant in the playoffs and had a game in which he made all 21 shots he attempted.
Yao automatically became eligible for the NBA Draft in 2002, with international players being eligible if they were 22 at the start of the NBA season. Widely considered a top prospect, he allegedly wowed scouts with a terrific exhibition at a draft camp. It caught the interest of the team with the #1 overall draft pick, the Houston Rockets. The Rockets had needed a center after the departure of long-time star Hakeem Olajuwon a year before, and decided Yao would be able to fill their void. In the 2002 NBA Draft, Yao became the first international player without U.S. college experience to be selected first overall.
During the 2002 offseason, Yao played with the Chinese national team at the FIBA World Championships in Indianapolis. He made the all-tournament team in Indianapolis, alongside fellow NBA rookie-to-be Manu Ginobili and established NBA stars Dirk Nowitzki and Peja Stojakovic. This helped reinforce his reputation and led many to predict that Yao would become the next dominant NBA center.
Yao's preseason performances, however, were questionable, and left many wondering why he was the first overall pick. He started the regular season on the bench, and seemed to be a draft bust. However, he began to turn things around in mid-November. In a game against the Los Angeles Lakers, he scored 20 points in a game where he made all of his shots (9 field goals and two free throws) against one of the best teams in the NBA. This performance led to a memorable televised incident where TNT basketball analyst Charles Barkley, having lost a bet in which he stated Yao would never score 20 points in a game for the season, was supposed to literally kiss the buttocks of TNT co-analyst Kenny Smith, but was forced to fulfill the bet on a donkey brought onto the TV set by Smith. Two games later, against the Rockets' in-state rival Dallas Mavericks, he deposited 30 points and grabbed 16 rebounds in a game that showed that Yao could definitely play as a starter. By the end of the month, Yao was firmly entrenched in the starting lineup.
By December and January, Yao was proving to be a highly consistent starter. He put up only a few big games, largely because he didn't play a lot of minutes in games, but he helped his team whenever he took to the court. Eventually, he was perceived as a rival to the Lakers' star center Shaquille O'Neal, turning Rockets/Lakers games into Yao vs. Shaq games. O'Neal was criticized for comments he made before one of these matchups, as he told a reporter to leave Yao a message which mimicked the Chinese language. Yao took it in stride, and eased the situation by joking that "Chinese is a hard language to learn."
That sort of good humour and light-heartedness off the court, plus his reputation for being very personable, made him extremely popular among fans. His likability inspired a catchy song in the Houston area (based on the popular "Olé" chants you would hear at a European football game), and, despite being just a rookie, Yao quickly became one of the league's most marketable players. Featured in advertisements of Apple, Gatorade, and a popular Super Bowl ad for Visa, it did not take long for "Yao Ming" to become a household name.
In February, Yao was rewarded for his excellent play by being selected as the starting center for the Western Conference in the 2003 All-Star Game in Atlanta. Although scored only two points and grabbed only two rebounds in 16 minutes of play, his selection proved how popular he was with fans, as he garnered more votes than established NBA stars such as Shaquille O'Neal.
Following the All-Star break, Yao continued the consistency he showed in the first half of the year, as he helped the Rockets unsuccessfully battle for a playoff spot. Yao finished the season averaging 13.5 points and 8.2 rebounds per game, second among rookies, in addition to a rookie-class best 1.8 blocks per game. In spite of his success, he finished only 2nd in rookie of the year voting, losing out to high schooler Amare Stoudemire of the Phoenix Suns.
During the NBA's offseason in 2003, Yao spent a lot of time helping to raise money and awareness of SARS in his home country. Among his efforts was a telethon he hosted, which would raise $300,000 to help stop the disease.
Yao's sophomore season was even more successful than his first; he averaged 17.5 points and 9.0 rebounds per game, and scored a career-high 41 points against the Atlanta Hawks in February. He was voted the starting center of the NBA All-Star game for the second year in a row (once again ahead of Shaquille O'Neal). His improvement was showcased by his 16 points and 4 rebounds in only 20 minutes in his second All-Star game. Yao was also instrumental in helping the Rockets claim the seventh seed in the 2003-2004 Playoffs. Despite his efforts, the team was eliminated by the Lakers in the first round. However, his performance left no doubt that Yao would be the next dominant center of the NBA.
During the 2004 Athens Olympics, Yao carried the Chinese flag during the opening ceremony. He then famously vowed to abstain from shaving for half a year unless the Chinese national basketball team make it into the quarter-finals. After some sub-par displays, where China slumped 58-83, 57-82 and 52-89 against Spain, Argentina and Italy respectively, they came back with a miraculous 67-66 win over reigning world champions Serbia & Montenegro; Yao practically carried the team with 27 points. He was selected to the All-Olympics team with his dominating performance, averaging 20.7 points and 9.3 rebounds per game while shooting 55.9% from the field.
See also: Ma Jian, Mengke Bateer, Wang Zhizhi
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