Free Asiancy

Yao Ming is alive, running, and still really, really, ridiculously, super-humanly tall. Those are full grown adult females of the same species (Homo sapiens) that he is running towards (and, as I like to imagine it, about to engulf in a Katamari-like fashion as he grows even larger and larger until he can eventually roll up trees, cars, small nations, etc.).

Aside from my obsession with Katamari Damacy, this photograph brings a few other things to mind:
1. Yao Ming might be paler than I am.
2. Do people in China wear any other colors aside from red, white and black?
3. What the hell has Yao been up to this past year?

Since there could be some debate over the answers to questions one and two, I'm just going to go ahead and address the last question in this post.

It has been just shy of a year since Yao had surgery to reconstruct his foot, which he fractured in last year's semi-finals. In his time off the court, he bought his old team (not too shabby), provided aid to victims of China's earthquake, rebuilt some playgrounds, starred in a film, hosted a gala, endorsed some products overseas, and worked out on a treadmill designed by NASA. Oh, and he also had a baby.


On May 21, 2010, Yao and his wife Ye Li, also professional basketball player, welcomed their daughter into the world. At just over two months old, my sources put her height at roughly three feet and her temperament at a mounting feeling of inadequacy - "No, it's okay Sweetie. Just because mommy and daddy BOTH made it to the Olympics playing basketball doesn't mean you have to." Really. No pressure.

Most recently, Yao has chosen not to opt out of his contract with the Rockets. Which, you know, is probably a pretty good idea since they paid him a whole lot of money last season to keep a big Yao-sized spot on the bench warm. Now he's working with Daryl Morey (and the magic of the internet) to entice free agents as he returns to the court to practice.

There. Now you're all caught up.