the NBA players union. In the correspondence, he advised both that a nasty legal battle awaited if Falk or anyone else continued to interfere. In the end, the private and public maneuverings only served to sour the Chinese on the NBA. Ultimately it was determined that Ming would forego the 2001 draft.

Ming spent the following summer touring the world with the Chinese national team. One of their stops was Dallas, where he received some one-on-one instruction from Kiki Vandeweghe, who was then working for the Mavericks. The Chinese also competed in a full slate of international tournaments. At the East Asian Games in Japan, Ming helped China reach the final against Australia. Despite his 11 points, eight rebounds and five blocks, the Chinese fell 105-93. Weeks later China dominated an uneven field in the Asian Championships. The team took all eight of its games by double-digits to win the tournament, and Ming was named MVP.

Ming next led China to the silver medal at the World University Games, in Beijing. The team’s most impressive victory came in the semifinals against the U.S., a squad that included Juan Dixon and Lonny Baxter of Maryland, Roger Mason Jr. of Virginia and Lyn Greer of Temple. To the delight of the home fans, the Chinese roared to an 11-point lead, then held off a fierce rally from the Americans for an 83-82 victory. Ming chipped in with 12 points. In the final, however, China was routed by Yugoslavia, 101-61.

Ming quickly shifted his focus to the 2001-02 CBA campaign. He and the Sharks were a team on a mission. Sparked in part by a couple of Americans—Lloyd “Sweet Pea” Daniels and Steve Hart—Shanghai rolled during the regular season, posting a record of 23-1. On his way to his second consecutive MVP award, Ming was phenomenal, averaging 29.7 points, 18.5 rebounds and 4.8 blocks.

In the playoffs, he guided Shanghai to a pair of series sweeps, setting up another showdown with Bayi for the league title. Two things worked in the Sharks’ favor this time around. First, the Rockets were without Zhi-Zhi, who by now had joined the Mavericks. Second, Shanghai had bolstered its roster with the addition of David Benoit, a member of the Utah Jazz during the team’s heyday in the late 1990s. Those factors helped turn the tables on Bayi. The Sharks won the best-of-five final to capture their first championship. Ming raised his performance to a new level, averaging 41 points and 21 rebounds a game.

Ming’s attention then shifted to the NBA draft. The Sharks and the Chinese government seemed open to negotiating his release, so it was time to start boning up on American cities. At first, he thought he’d like to go to a team in a major market with a large Chinese population, such as New York, Chicago or Golden State. When the Rockets won the lottery, he began to think that Houston might be an even better place to play. For one thing, the media there wasn’t nearly as aggressive as it was in bigger U.S. cities. Considering the headlines that his arrival in the NBA promised to generate, this was a bonus. Also, coach Rudy Tomjanovich and GM Carroll Dawson had plenty of experience with athletic big men. Ming remembered Rudy T as the man at the helm when Hakeem and the Rockets soared to a pair of NBA titles.

Of course, there were no guarantees that Ming would be the first overall draftee. In May, with debate raging over whether Houston should gamble its pick on Ming, he held a workout for 25 NBA teams at Loyola’s Alumni Gym in north Chicago. The hour-long session was run by former NBA coach P.J. Carlesimo. Also participating were Chris Christoffersen, a 7-2 center from Oregon, Marquette point guard Cordell Henry and Mitch Henderson, an assistant coach at Northwestern. Ming displayed his soft shooting touch, quick feet, and shot-blocking abilities, but he seemed to lack intensity. Many NBA teams left Chicago with more questions than answers about him.