Yao Ming: Chinese center, NBA star, and cultural ambassador

Yao was born in Shanghai on September 12, 1980. His father, Yao Zhiyuan, is 2.08 meters tall and his mother, Fengdi Fang, is 1.88 meters tall. Fang was captain of the Chinese national women's basketball team. Yao's parents were the tallest couple in China at the time of his birth.

At the age of 13, Yao applied to the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). To make the team, he trained up to ten hours a day. After four years in the junior ranks, he played for the first team for the first time at the age of 17. At that time he was already 2.26 meters tall. In his first season (1997/98), he averaged 10 points and 8 rebounds per game. The following season, Yao broke his foot early in the season and for the second time in his career, which he said reduced his jumping ability by 10-15 inches. The Sharks made the playoffs in both of the following seasons, but lost to the Bayi Rockets each time. Wang Zhizhi then left the Bayi Rockets for the NBA, becoming the first Chinese player in league history a year before Yao. The Sharks won the CBA title for the first time that season. In the playoffs of his fifth and final season in Shanghai, Yao averaged 38.9 points and 20.2 rebounds per game on a 76.6% field goal percentage. In one of the final games, he converted all of his 21 throws.

Yao was urged to enter the 1999 NBA Draft by Li Yaomin, the Sharks' assistant general manager. Li also pressured Yao to sign a contract with Evergreen Sports Inc. as a player agent. Under the contract, 33% of Yao's earnings were to go to Evergreen, but the contract was later voided.

After Yao's decision to move to the NBA in 2002, a team of advisors formed that would become known as "Team Yao." The team consisted of Erik Zhang, the negotiator; Bill Duffy, Yao's NBA advisor; Lu Hao, his Chinese advisor; John Huizinga, an economics professor at the University of Chicago; and Bill Sanders, the vice president of marketing at the firm BDA Sports Management. Yao was widely predicted to be the No. 1 pick. However, some teams worried about Yao's eligibility for the NBA because it was not yet clear whether the CBA would approve Yao's move to the United States.

Shortly before, Wang Zhizhi had refused to return to China when he was supposed to compete for the Chinese national basketball team, and had subsequently been barred from playing in the national team. Therefore, the CBA insisted to Yao that he must return to compete for the Chinese national team. They also made it a condition that he would be allowed to join the Houston Rockets exclusively as a No. 1 pick and exclusively. After receiving assurances from "Team Yao", the CBA gave their approval to the move to the US on the morning of the 2002 draft. In doing so, he became the first foreign player in NBA draft history to be selected No. 1 despite lacking U.S. college experience.

First years (2002-2005)

Yao did not participate in the Rockets' pre-season preparation, instead playing for China in the 2002 World Basketball Championship. In his first NBA game against the Indiana Pacers, he managed only one point and one rebound. He scored his first basket in the NBA against the Denver Nuggets. In his first seven games, Yao averaged just 14 minutes on the court and averaged four points. In doing so, he seemed to confirm the skepticism that respected reporters like Bill Simmons and Dick Vitale had expressed months ago. From mid-November on, however, Yao increasingly played his way into the team: after 20 points against the Los Angeles Lakers and - two games later - 30 points and 16 rebounds against the Dallas Mavericks, he was set in the Rockets' starting lineup.

Yao finished his rookie season averaging 13.5 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. He finished second to Amar'e Stoudemire in the Rookie of the Year voting and was a unanimous selection to the NBA All-Rookie First Team. Other awards included the Sporting News Rookie of the Year and the Laureus Newcomer of the Year Award.

Before the start of Yao's second season (2003-04), Rudy Tomjanovich resigned as head coach of the Rockets due to health reasons. He was replaced by Jeff Van Gundy, longtime head coach of the New York Knicks. Van Gundy began to gear the offensive game towards Yao, which improved Yao's scoring and rebounding average. In a February 2004 game against the Atlanta Hawks that was decided in Houston's favor only after three overtimes, he set new career bests with 41 points and 7 assists. For the second year in a row, Yao was selected as the starting center in the NBA All-Star Game. Yao finished the season with 17.5 points and 9.0 rebounds per game.

Finishing seventh in the Western Conference, the Rockets made the playoffs for the first time in Yao's career, but lost in the first round to the Los Angeles Lakers. Yao averaged 15.0 points and 7.4 rebounds.

In 2004, the Rockets brought in multiple All-Star Tracy McGrady from the Orlando Magic. After this signing, the Rockets were considered a title contender for the 2004-05 season. Both McGrady and Yao were voted into the NBA All-Star Game as starters. In the fan vote by which players are selected for the All-Star Game, Yao broke Michael Jordan's 1997 record with a total of 2,558,278 votes. The Rockets won 51 games that season and finished the regular season in fifth place in the Western Conference. In this second straight playoff appearance, the team faced the Dallas Mavericks. Houston took the first two games in Dallas. Yao converted 13 of his 14 throws in the second game, setting a new record for the best throwing percentage in Rockets playoff history. Ultimately, though, the Rockets lost four of their final five games, including the decisive Game 7 by a 40-point differential. Yao finished that game series averaging 21.4 points (on 65% shooting) and 7.7 rebounds.

Seasons marked by injuries (2005-2010)

After missing only two games out of a total of 246 games in his first three years in the NBA (notable for a player of his size, as tall players are particularly prone to injury), Yao missed an extended period of time for the first time in his fourth season (2005-06) due to osteomyelitis. The bone marrow inflammation in the big toe of his left foot was operated on December 18, 2005. Despite missing 21 games due to surgery and rehab, he was again voted into the All-Star Game with the highest number of votes as a starter.

In the 25 games following the All-Star weekend, Yao averaged 25.7 points and 11.6 rebounds, while shooting 53.7% from the field and 87.8% on free throws. At the end of the season, in which he played 57 games, he averaged 22.3 points and 10.2 rebounds. This marked the first time he finished a season with a so-called "20/10 average". Tracy McGrady also missed numerous games. He only played in 47 games due to back problems, and he and Yao only appeared in 31 games together. With only 34 wins out of 82 games, the Rockets missed the playoffs. Four days before the end of the season, Yao was injured again: In the game against the Utah Jazz on April 10, 2006, he broke his left foot and had to take six months off.

Early in his fifth season (2006-07), on December 23, 2006, Yao suffered another injury: he broke his right knee while attempting to block a shot. For the season, he had averaged 26.8 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game up to that point, and was considered a candidate for the MVP title. Due to the injury, he missed the All-Star Game, which would have been his fifth. In the league, he missed 34 games until he was able to play again in early March.

Despite the long absence of Yao, the Rockets reached the play-offs. Houston won the first two games of the best-of-seven series against the Utah Jazz, but lost four of the next five games. Houston lost the seventh game at home despite 29 points from Yao, 15 of which came in the final quarter. Although Yao averaged 25.1 points and 10.3 rebounds in the playoff games, he was not pleased with himself, saying he "didn't do his job" ("I didn't do my job").

On May 18, 2007, a few weeks after the Rockets were eliminated, the team fired head coach Jeff Van Gundy. Three days later, former Sacramento Kings coach Rick Adelman signed on in Houston. Observers speculated that with the new coach, the style of play would be more offensive-oriented than it was with his predecessor.

On November 9, 2007, Yao played for the first time against fellow countryman Yi Jianlian of the Milwaukee Bucks. The Rockets won the encounter 104-88. In China, the game was broadcast on numerous television channels and reached more than 200 million viewers there alone. This made it one of the most-watched games in NBA history. As in previous years, Yao was again selected to the starting lineup for the All-Star Game. Prior to All-Star weekend, the Rockets won eight straight games, which they extended to a 12-game winning streak after the All-Star break. However, on February 26, 2008, Yao then suffered a fatigue fracture in his left foot during practice and was out for the rest of the season. However, contrary to initial fears, he was able to participate in the Olympic Games in Beijing. Despite Yao's absence, the Rockets extended their winning streak to 22 games, the second-longest in NBA history. Yao underwent successful surgery on March 3, where screws were placed in his foot to support the bone. Recovery time was estimated at four months. In the 55 games played during the 2007-08 season, Yao averaged 22.0 points, 10.8 rebounds and 2.0 blocks.

The following season, Yao played 77 games, his first full season since 2004-05. He averaged 19.7 points on 54.8% shooting and 9.9 rebounds. He improved his free throw percentage to 86.6%. Even without McGrady, who was out for the rest of the season due to an injury starting in February, the Rockets finished the season in 5th place in the Western Conference with 53 wins. They beat the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the playoffs to reach the second round for the first time since 1997 and the first time in Yao's career.

In the first game of the second round against the Los Angeles Lakers, Yao led his team to victory in Los Angeles with 28 points, including 8 points in the last four minutes of the game. The next two games were lost, and Yao sprained his ankle in Game 3. Upon examination, he was diagnosed with a stress fracture, so Yao's season was over. Without Yao, the Rockets eventually lost the series 4-3, and further examination revealed that the injury jeopardized the continuation of his career. Several weeks later, the decision was made to have Yao's left foot undergo surgery to permanently reduce the stress on his scaphoid. Yao was forced to rest for the entire 2009-10 season and did not return to the team until pre-season of the 2010-11 season. However, he suffered a fatigue fracture in his left ankle after only a few games. In July 2011, Ming announced his retirement due to persistent injury problems.