Yao Ming

 Yao Ming (Chinese: Yao Ming born on 12 September the 12th of September, 1980) is a Chinese basketball executive and former professional athlete. He played for the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) and the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Yao was chosen to play for the Western Conference in the NBA All-Star Game eight times and was selected to the All-NBA Team five times. In his final year as a player, he was also the tallest currently playing player in the NBA, at 2.29 m (7 ft 6 in).Yao was born in Shanghai, started playing for the Sharks as a teenager, and was on their senior team for five seasons within the CBA and won the championship during his final season. After negotiating with the CBA and the Sharks to get his release Yao was selected by the Rockets as the first overall pick in the 2002 NBA draft. Yao made it to the NBA playoffs four times and the Rockets won the first-round series of the postseason in 2009 which was their first playoff series victory since 1997. In July 2011, Yao announced his retirement from professional basketball due to an array of foot and ankle injuries which caused him to miss more than 250 games over the course of his six seasons.In eight seasons with the Rockets, Yao ranks sixth among franchise leaders in both total points and rebounding, and second in total blocks