Ellis, Brown tell Chinese leaders Yao would get a warm welcome By JOSH GAJEWSKI Copyright 2002 Houston Chronicle While Houston Mayor Lee Brown continued his visit to China on a trade mission Monday, Texas state Sen. Rodney Ellis, who was with Brown in Beijing last week, shed some light on what he called a very successful meeting with Chinese basketball and political leaders regarding the Rockets' potential drafting of Yao Ming. Ellis, speaking to reporters at halftime of Monday's Comets season opener against the Los Angeles Sparks, said the addition of the 7-5 Chinese center to Houston's landscape not only could provide the Rockets with a potential superstar but also could help the city's trade relations and various business interests with China. Ellis, D-Houston, said that while in China, Brown was contacted by Rockets chief operating officer George Postolos last week about arranging a meeting with government and basketball officials regarding Yao, 21. The Rockets have the first pick in next month's NBA draft. "(Postolos was) saying that `if you're going to be in China, if there's anything you could do to try and help us get Yao Ming, we'd appreciate it,' " Ellis said. "So the mayor did change his schedule around considerably. We met with the head of the China Basketball Association, and they said it was the first time a mayor had gone to their office. "The delegation from Houston included a number of Asian-American business leaders from the city as well as Mayor Brown, who did a good job of pointing out that basketball is extremely important in Houston. ... We did read press accounts in the China Daily News where there was some concern if you look at Houston compared to other cities (and) whether or not we'd be as open and welcoming of someone of Chinese ancestry. The mayor made the point to take him as an example. "He happens to be African-American, the city has a very diverse population, and he made the point that you're not just dealing with a city where you have to compete for a lot of different interests. This is a town where basketball means virtually everything. "We also had a meeting with the local head of the party in Beijing. In that meeting to break the ice, the mayor talked about a lot of things. But when he happened to mention that he was hoping that he could help welcome Yao Ming when he comes here, you could not only see the party chair's demeanor change, but everybody's demeanor changed in that room." Postolos, who also spoke briefly to reporters at halftime, thanked the mayor for his efforts. "The timing, the coincidence of us winning the lottery and becoming focused on Yao Ming the same week that they were in China meeting with senior government officials really had an impact on everybody involved," Postolos said. "The Rockets organization is incredibly grateful to Sen. Ellis and to the mayor and to the rest of the delegation for putting in a good word for us to relevant Chinese officials. "(The potential drafting of Ming) is a very significant event for their country and this organization. It's important to show respect and set a positive tone from the beginning, and we couldn't think of a better way to do it." When asked about Chinese officials' concerns regarding Yao, Ellis said that while they certainly are hoping for Yao to be the No. 1 pick, they also want to make sure he would be able to continue to play for teams in China and that he'd "be able to keep as much of his culture intact as possible -- not become too Americanized." "We made the point that this town would do everything that's humanly possible to make him feel comfortable here," Ellis said. "The city has a vested interest in whatever the Rockets decide they want to do with the first pick -- they'll make that decision. But it is the first pick not just for Houston and Texas, but in terms of the country (of China), it (would) be a major international statement. But first of all, (the Rockets) have to make sure it's a good basketball statement. It has to make sense for basketball first." http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/sports/1428079
Great Article. It is important to Chinese people that we show them respect and there is no better way to show that than to send important (politically powerful) poeple to meet with them. This is the best thing that could of happened besides GW himself going there.
