Who votes on rule changes? How do board of governors meetings run? Founded in , the CBA occupies a strange corner of the sports landscape. On one hand it has become the world's second-highest-paying basketball league. Beyond competitive salaries, though, pretty much everything else needed an upgrade when Yao assumed control—a task one CBA staffer compares with renovating a rundown apartment complex while the residents are still living inside.
As Yao did with the national program, though, he has already tackled a wide range of league issues in short order.
To ramp up visibility and competition, he increased the regular season from 36 to 46 games and expanded the playoff field from 10 to 12 of the league's 20 teams. He sold broadcast rights to a dozen TV stations, plus two streaming services. Nine team logos and four nicknames were revamped. And the postseason awards were named after influential figures in Chinese basketball history, while the trophies themselves were redesigned. Until last season the league used generic prizes purchased online.
Still, certain matters lack quick fixes. In the draft only 14 domestic university players were selected. It helps that Yao has good connections whenever he needs help.
One of Yao's earliest meetings after taking over was held at the Manhattan office of David Stern, where he chatted up the old NBA commish for nearly three hours over chicken sandwiches. He does not have the same economic liberties that a business in the U. Resources, too. We're far away from that, but it's nice to have a long-term goal. Such possibilities depend on a long-standing relationship built around mutual admiration. For Silver's part, he got to know Yao when, as president of NBA Entertainment, he executive-produced a documentary capturing Yao's first season.
Silver recalls a gathering at the NBA's inaugural Global Games in China, a trip that offered a first look at the same internal forces that still drive Yao today. Yao, then 24, had been asked to address a large, diverse group of NBA players and Chinese bureaucrats.
He was so overwhelmed by the moment. But he made a decision: I'm going to embrace it. And I'm going to accept this obligation—maybe sometimes a burden—to be the transformational person I believe I can be.
In the very real land of Beijing, a hero wanders Each day around lunch-time at least when he's working from the federation office Yao heads out for a stroll around a small lake at the center of the nearby park.
I ask if he wants to take that walk today and he shakes his head. People surround us. Aside from light cardio, Yao doesn't exercise much these days. He can't remember the last time he played basketball though a CBA colleague reports witnessing him casually drain nine of 10 free throws—with one hand—while visiting a national team practice. His explanation for quitting hoops is typically self-deprecating: "Me? No, no, no, no. I'm too fat.
The same reason he declined to be honored at center court during the Global Games last fall. The same reason he no longer autographs basketballs. For Yao this job has created something of a personal paradox.
After so many years of attracting gawkers whenever he sets foot outside, he's aching to recede from the spotlight. I want one of those. Before Yao Ming can disappear, he must first figure out how Chinese basketball can produce more Yao Mings. Holloway is ready for a dominant UFC comeback this Saturday. With a 1—0 win over Colombia on Thursday, the South American giant continued its dominant qualifying run.
Los Angeles's newest receiver has a new home and a new contract. The Olympian and her girlfriends, all of Asian descent, were waiting for a ride when a car came speeding by, yelling racist slurs at the group. Rich Paul says the three-time All-Star is not ready to play right now.
The former Browns star seems to have sent a lot of texts on Thursday, ranging from Taylor Swift's Red album release to the iconic Wicked Witch of the East debate. Home NBA. SI Recommends. In February , Ming took another significant step forward as the Chinese Basketball Association had a unanimous vote to appoint him as their president. He has operated from that position over the last few years as he has helped further expand the reach of the CBA.
Before taking that position, Ming had owned the Shanghai team since before selling his entire shareholder before the season. It has been nearly a decade since Ming stepped away from the NBA due to injury, but it has given a more precise picture to reflect on his legacy and ability on the court.
It was the injuries that genuinely prevented him from putting together a long career that could have seen him accomplish much more in the league. In , he broke a bone in his left foot. And so it went for Houston's greatest hope for another title.
Year after year, he lost time due to nagging issues with his lower body. The most recent was a stress fracture in his left ankle. The Rockets kept him out the rest of the season in the hopes that time would heal, at least, this wound. In the background was the fear that this latest injury would be the final blow to a tumultuous career. It was. Friday brings an end to a beautiful stay that could have been so much more. There are plenty of players that left the NBA unfulfilled from what their talents promised, all for different reasons.
Yao Ming will forever be enshrined on the Mt. Rushmore of players that retired with far more questions than answers. The one thing we cannot deny is his stamp on the game from a global standpoint.
The man with an awkward gait and slow movement ushered in an immediate interest in the game for millions of people. His greatest gift to the game then, happened off the court. Yao Ming joins a cast of other unfinished tenures. It makes you wince a little to think of just how great the missing pieces could have been.
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