Results tagged “rockets”

With the opening Olympic tournament game against Team USA just around the corner, a less than fully recuperated Yao Ming finds himself sandwiched between angry fans on both sides of the Pacific Ocean. Chinese fans blame the Rockets for the stress fracture Yao Ming sustained during this last NBA season, thus jeopardizing his upcoming performance and China's chances to shine in the Olympic tournament. American fans hurl back that it is the year round obligations to the Chinese National team that have worn him out, and remind the Chinese exactly who is footing Yao Ming's $15 million salary. Given the headache of dealing with pressure from both sides, it should come as no surprise when Yao stated that he would like this to be his final Olympic appearance.

"It will be my third," he said. "I was a very young player and got my first taste of the Olympics in 2000 at Sydney. I played in Athens in 2004 and now this is my home country and the highest special honor in 2008. Enough, I think. Why would I need to play in London in 2012?"

Titan24 translates the original story from Houston Chronicle into Chinese for its readers, while shifting the focus away from the obligation Yao Ming feels towards his fans on both sides of the ocean, and concentrating more on the possibility of Yao bowing out in the future. They go as far as to caption the above photo of Yao on the bench, "Does Yao Ming really want to say goodbye to the China team?" The original Houston Chronicle article shows Yao in an infinitely more positive light, as a single person standing in the difficult position of trying to bridge the divide between Chinese and Americans, and who above all remains dedicated to the cause of supporting his homeland.

"China's giant centre Yao Ming will undergo surgery Monday to fix a stress fracture in his left foot, the Houston Rockets announced on Saturday."

Yao Ming is not the best singer. And neither is any of his team mates from the Houston Rockets as this latest video of them spreading the holiday cheer with their own rendition of Jingle Bell Rock shows (Click here to watch them sing 12 Days of Christmas). But we love it!

Notorious NBA bad boy Yao Ming has done it again. He's late for national team training — and China's official sports association has made it clear they are sick and tired of his Rodmanesque antics:

Chinese basketball fans held their collective breath this morning as the NBA draft took place a full 12 time-zones away. 22-year old 19-year old Yi Jianlian slipped past his projected spot at the number 5 pick when the Boston Celtics signed a draft-and-trade agreement with the Seattle Supersonics involving 7-time all-star Ray Allen.

So after reports that Yao Ming would get married to his fiancée Ye Li, a player on the Chinese women's basketball team last year in Shanghai proved to be all but wrong, it appears the Houston Rockets star is finally ready to tie the knot this summer. According to the Rockets' Manager Daryl Morey, the couple will hold their wedding in August after Yao Ming is done with serial practices in July.

The NBA is coming to Shanghai again on October 17. This time the Cleveland Cavaliers, fresh off the worst NBA Finals performance we have ever seen, take on the Orlando Magic. If meaningless preseason hoops is your thing, start booking tickets to Minhang District now. The game is being played way the hell out there at the Shanghai Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center. And for those of you who remember the 2004 Shanghai clash between the Houston Rockets and Sacramento Kings (tickets for which started at US$12) you might be interested to know that tickets for the 2007 version start at US$105. Now, we know the dollar has gotten weaker ... but this seems like a greedy move for a sport and league that should be trying to appeal to the common man. (UPDATE: According to the seating chart, it looks like very few nose-bleed seats were priced at RMB 200, but maybe they are sold out.)

Shanghaiist has a fondness for elephants retained since our childhood exposure to Barbar. In mid-May we linked out to a Washington Post report that stated that the world's illegal ivory trade was being facilitated by Chinese-run smuggling rings that have extended their reach into Africa over the last decade.

Shanghai-made Ferris wheel applies for Guinness World Records

"It is 25 meters taller than the London Eye, currently the tallest observation wheel in the world, and only cost one-eighth the price to build." Probably very safe.

Six feared dead as Beijing subway tunnel collapses

"A contractor had tried to conceal the collapse from authorities by sealing off the site and confiscating the workers' cell phones, it said, citing rescuers."

Chinese director receives official approval for movie on Nanjing Massacre

"The film, to be titled 'Nanjing! Nanjing!', has been approved by the State Administration of Radio Film and Television, and filming is expected to start in April and be completed by the end of the year."

Lau's crazy fan refuses to take father's ashes home

"Yang Lijuan, a crazy fan of Hong Kong star Andy Lau, left Hong Kong yesterday with broken dreams, a destroyed family and no plans to take her father's ashes home."

Dad's suicide follows daughter visit with idol

"A father whose daughter has been obsessed with a Hong Kong pop star for 13 years committed suicide in Hong Kong one day after he and his wife escorted his 28-year-old daughter to meet her idol."

Shanghai's Tombstone Raider Uncovers Forgotten Jewish History

"In sidewalks, ditches and piles of rubble, Bar-Gal, a 41- year-old Israeli photojournalist, searches for slabs with a sign -- a Hebrew character, a Torah shape, a Star of David -- that identifies the long-lost headstones of Shanghai's once-thriving Jewish community."

Bayi win China basketball championship

"Former NBA centre Wang Zhizhi led the Bayi Rockets to the 2007 China Basketball Championships Wednesday, dethroning three-time defending champs Guangdong Tigers 88-83."

: Shanghai in the Movies

"The filming of the movie was extraordinary, extremely beautiful and capturing a number of Shanghai's distinctive elements very well, without a glance at Shanghai's tourist skylines."

Yahoo to offer e-mail storage without end

"Two countries - China and Japan - are excluded. 'We will continue working with these markets on their storage plans, Kremer said in a statement." But can't anyone in China just use a .com account?

Anhui boy dies of bird flu mysteriously

"An initial investigation showed that the victim didn't have any contact with infected or dead poultry. A local veterinarian center also didn't find any animals infected with the bird flu."

Beijing warned against sending cell-phone porn

"Beijingers who send pornographic text messages or pictures on their cell phones may face fines up to 3,000 yuan (US$385) and two weeks in administrative detention, the local public security department has warned."

Pudong forest park opens to public

"Tourists can walk along a two-kilometer shoreline in the park, which is at the confluence of the Huangpu River and the Yangtze River. The park also has three piers."

Man's finger fractured by Metro train door

"I was pushed to the front of the crowd, and the train was pulling into the station just centimeters away from my body," Gu recalled. "But nobody would move out of the way and no one was there to keep the anxious crowd in order."

Another way to beat The GFW - tunnel out with your own secure proxy server

"However if you're like me and want to save a few RMB and already host your own web-site on a Unix-based server you may want to set-up your own secure proxy server through the use of SSH tunnelling. Sounds difficult? Well, it isn't. "

I love chinglish.

“Nuclear Area - Wonderful space for individuals”. Picture taken near the Yangchang road in Shanghai, China.

Tennis-Shanghai to get Masters Series tournament in 2009

"Shanghai hosted the season-ending Masters Cup in 2002, 2005 and 2006, but this will be the first time a top tier Masters Series event has been staged in Asia."

Pirated Windows Vista Identified In Shanghai

"Shanghai Yangpu Department of Industry and Commerce has identified a batch of pirated Windows Vista software worth about RMB2 million and they have transferred two suspects to the local police." Wow. What a surprise.

Hohn Daly confirms Shanghai appearance

"John Daly confirmed Tuesday that a recent injury would not prevent him from appearing at the BMW Asian Open next month at Tomson Pudong." Their headline typo, not ours.

MG = Modern Gentleman

"Oh dear. How mighty brands can fall! Nanjing Auto, the new owners of MG, the classic British marque, have re-branded it as “Modern Gentleman” (however, it still apparently carries the British flag, so not all is lost)."

Buddha Machine: spiritual, generative transistor radio

"The Buddha Machine from Chinese manufacturer FM3 looks like a cheap transistor radio. Turn the single dial, and it starts making crazy-ass, generative ambient music."

Chinese MMO offers accounts to banned players who donate blood

"The makers of China's popular MMO Cabal told banned players that they could get back into the game if they donated blood."

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Photo by Swiss James found via the Shanghaiist Contribute page.

Houston Rockets center and Shanghai native Yao Ming saw his season come to an end this morning when he broke his left foot late in the first quarter in a game against the Utah Jazz. The break apparently happened when Yao's foot was stepped on by Utah's Andrei Kirilenko, whose hobbies include injuring himself and others.

With his best performance of the season, Chinese superstar Yao Ming led the injury-plagued Houston Rockets past the Indiana Pacers, 103-99 on Wednesday night. Yao had 38 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 blocks in a gargantuan effort that rallied the Rockets from 17 points down for the victory.

The Chinese may stuff the All-Star ballot box for Yao Ming, but they would rather wear his teammate's jersey. When asked about his popularity in China, Houston Rockets guard Tracy McGrady said he wasn't surprised at all. "I've got a lot of love over there in China," he said. More love than the most famous Chinese player ever. Yao's jersey ranks No. 3. Here is the Top Ten:

But we like the place. For one thing, jalapeno pepper jelly was invented there. What's more, Houston is the home-away-from-home for Shanghai’s very own Yao Ming, who plays for the Rockets. There couldn't be a better reason to offer a hearty welcome to the newest kid on the -ist block, Houstonist. Go and check them out, for Yao updates and much, much more.

Shanghai's model worker Yao Ming has decided not to represent his hometown in the Chinese National Games, which begin this October in Jiangsu Province.

The China Daily called Friday's game between China and Puerto Rico in the Stankovic Continental Champions Cup the "most shameful night" in China basketball history. With 1:28 to play and China enjoying a comfortable 91-80 lead, Puerto Rico center Manuel Narvaez challenged China's Yi Jianlian with a foul to the face. Chinese players Mo Ke and Li Nan took offense to the foul, left the bench and rushed Navaraz. A "mass brawl" ensued. Soon fans at Beijing Capital Gymnasium were pelting Pueto Rican players with plastic bottle, cups and popcorn. One fan even threw his shoe. The Puerto Rican team left the court, shielding themselves with chairs. The game was called and two hours later China was declared the winner. The Chongqing Evening News has photos of the fracas.