When you see a report on Yao somewhere, chances are, it's already posted by pryuen here: http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?t=112053&page=10&pp=20
Dont know if it has been posted or not. If so, please ignore. Below is an article about Yao who is pretty certain to play with the CNT in the World Cup. http://www.asia-basket.com/chn/chn.asp Yao and Wang to Bring Yin and Yang to China's "Walking Great Wall" - July 18, 2006 - by Eurobasket News China is mulling a Yin and Yang strategy for the upcoming World Basketball Championships, based on the inside and outside games of Ming Yao (226-C-80) and Wang Zhizhi (214-C-79), known together as the "Walking Great Wall." The current national side is banking on the domineering skills of NBA All Star Yao to command the center position, while 2.14 meter (seven foot-one-inch) sharp-shooting Wang keeps defenders from collapsing on Yao by hoisting up three pointers from the perimeter. "For the world championships, the Yao-Wang combination is set, right now the key issue is which other players are best adapted to play with them," team manager Gong Luming told journalists. "We are going to get results with this team because the Yao-Wang combination is the best tandem of big men in the world." The World Championships, which begin in Japan on August 19, will be the first time that the 2.26 meter Yao has played with Wang since 2001, not long after the "Walking Great Wall" nickname was coined for China's seven-foot basketball players. "The teams are going to be strong at the World Championships, at game time, Ming Yao (226-C-80) will play center, but the defense is going to collapse on him, that is when we need to coordinate and get opportunities on the perimeter," Wang told journalists after a practice session on Monday. "Ming Yao (226-C-80) is so tall, he has good skills, so our strategy should be to try to play an inside game." The media have called Yao "the sun", or the Yang essence in the traditional Chinese philosophy on maintaining balance, while Wang is being called "the moon", or the Yin essence. However, key to Yao's participation will be whether or not he can fully recover from a broken foot sustained in a Houston Rocket match in April. With Yao recovering, Wang has led the team with averages of 20 points and 10 rebounds per game during a recent series of warm up matches in Italy, where he scored 44 points against Japan in one game and notched 19 first-half points against Italy. The former star with the mainland Bayi Rockets was kicked off the national side after he refused to play for China as he pursued a four-year NBA career with the Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Clippers and Miami Heat. But with the 2008 Beijing Olympics approaching the team has again sought his services in the hopes that China can win its first-ever Olympic basketball medal. "The thing that really has excited me, is that he (Wang) has scored at least 20 points every game," the Basketball Pioneers newspaper quoted Yao as saying. "The key is whether he can adjust his game when I come back. "When I return, the offense and the defense are going to be set up around me, so Big Wang is going to have to adjust to a new role, from being the main offensive player to a player with more of a supporting role." For China's Lithuanian coach Jonas Kazlauskas, it is crucial to get Yao and Wang on the practice court together so that a strategy can be worked out. "We will set up a strategy that fits both of them, this is for sure. But as Ming Yao (226-C-80) must train by himself for the coming weeks, there is still not a lot of time to have him work with Wang Zhizhi (214-C-79)," Kazlauskas told journalists. Team manager Gong said Yao is expected to fully recover by early August and should see action in an eight nation tournament in Nanjing city beginning on August 11. If his recovery is quicker he may see action against the US national team in southern Guangzhou city on August 7. Meanwhile, China will play seven warm up matches in the next two weeks in tournaments in France and Spain beginning on July 21. Yao will not be travelling with the team. (courtesy of chinabroadcast) Ming Yao Yao to Play Against US Dream Team - July 18, 2006 - by Eurobasket News Zhang Mingji, the captain of Yao's team told a local paper that Ming Yao (226-C-80) was "almost certain" to participate the warm-up game against the United States and the Stankovic Continental Champions Cup for China, which indicates he is highly possible to play the World Championships. The China and Rockets center did not showup for an opening training session of Team China Monday in Beijing. Instead, he was taking physical practices with his rehabilitation group. According to Yao's team, the super star will also miss Team China's European tour to continue nursing his injured foot. However Ming Yao (226-C-80) expressed his willingness to play a match as soon as possible. He told the Shanghai-based Oriental Morning Post that he was eager to play against the dream team? as it's an important warm-up for the World Championships. Later Zhang confirmed Yao's participation in the match during a telephone interview. The friendly match between China and United States will be played in Guangzhou, capital of the southern Guangdong province neighboring HongKong in early August. It will be followed by the Stankovic Cup in Nanjing prior to the World Champions in Japan. (Courtesy of china.org)
