On Tuesday, April 27th, Yao went to the Chinese Consulate in Houston to participate in a press conference and gathering of over 200 local Chinese community and academic leaders to pre-celebrate the Shanghai 2010 EXPO and Chinese/Texas “Friendly Relationship.”

In attendance was Texas Governor Rick Perry, who will be leading a Texas delegation to Shanghai and China in June.

Consul General to Houston Gao Yanping expressed that she hopes Governor Perry’s visit to China will further open the door to promoting a mutual exchange and cooperation in various fields between China and Texas.

Yao spoke a bit, and extended a warm welcome to Governor Perry and the delegation’s upcoming visit to China and the Shanghai 2010 EXPO. He told the Governor he hopes he enjoys the hospitality of the Shanghainese people, and that he shouldn’t miss some of the delicious Shanghainese food waiting there for him.

Click here for more photos of Yao and wife Ye Li at the press conference and gathering.

There’s a Chinese-U.S. business summit taking place in Los Angeles right now. They ran some polls, and Yao ranked at the top of two of them, even with him being unable to play over the past year.

The first poll regards Chinese individuals who are “Business Pacesetters in China” where Yao ranked over Jackie Chan, the chairman of Cheung Kong, Ltd., the chairman and CEO of Alibaba, the CEO of Sohu, and the President and CEO of Lenovo, just to name a few.

The second poll was “Reknown Chinese Brands in the U.S.” where Yao ranked far above brands like Haier, Acer, Lenovo, HTC, and CCTV.

We have seen many polls where Yao ranks as one of the top celebrities in China, but to rank so highly among a business crowd for business-oriented polls is quite impressive.

Click here for the official results.

Over the past couple of days, Yao has made a couple of posts on his Facebook and Twitter page.

Today he posted this on both:

Congrats to Aaron Brooks for winning the Most Improved Player Award. You deserved it. Thanks for your effort this season.

And yesterday he posted this on his Facebook page:

Juan Antonio Samaranch, who used to be the head of the IOC, died a couple of days ago. I’m sad that he passed, and that I didn’t get to know him personally. He was very famous in China and a good friend of our country. He supported us getting back into the Olympics. He was also the one who announced the 2008 Olympics would be held in Beijing.

What he did for us means way more than sports and the Olympics. His life is about friendship. Friendship is a very simple word, but how to do it is very very difficult, and he did it his entire life

Here’s a link to an article about Samaranch’s influence in China that Yao references. Personally, I’m glad Yao mentioned Samaranch’s impact on China since I didn’t realize how important he had been to China’s Olympic movement efforts.

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I’m a little late in doing a “Yao week in review,” so I’ll make this update on Yao’s latest activities a “last 10 days in review.”

Working back in time, a week ago Thursday (April 15th), Yao read to some Houston school kids as part of the NBA’s “Read to Achieve” program at a local HEB grocery store.

Click here for more photos from Yao’s reading to the kids.

The night before, Yao attended the Rockets’ final game of the season (played against the New Orleans Hornets), which was also Fan Appreciation Night. Before the game, Yao handed out popcorn to fans….

…then after the game, threw T-shirts into the crowd….

Click here for more photos from Yao’s Fan Appreciation Night activities.

On the Shanghai MAXXIS Sharks front, as you know, they lost their playoff series about 12 days ago against the Guangdong Tigers. The Sharks players, coaching staff, significant others, sponsors, officials from the Shanghai Municipal Sports Bureau, etc., got together for a cruise on the Huangpu River.

Click here for more photos from the Sharks get-together.

In this thread among all the photos, we also learn about some of the plans for foreign players John Lucas III, Garrett Siler, and Zaid Abbas. As a team, we learn what took place after the loss to Guangdong and the team’s plans over the next few weeks and months, according to a translation by Raymond from a Chinese article:

– Each player, including the expats, had a 1-on-1 discussion with coach Bob Donewald, Jr. and senior management on April 13 to talk about their individual performances for the season and improvements needed. Players were also free to provide input on how the club could be improved.

– Starting April 14, players have been given 3-5 weeks of vacation time, but the team is still adopting an “active rest” strategy where each player is asked to maintain a certain amount of exercise each day during their vacation: hitting the gym, jogging, cycling, swimming and so on.

– When players report back to the club after the vacation, a scenic spot with historical and cultural significance (tentatively Yunnan) will be chosen for 10 days to 2 weeks of physical training that won’t include basketball activities.

– Basketball training will follow after the physical training, then some invitational games will be played. Select players will be sent to overseas training camps in Taiwan, Australia, the USA and Europe. In addition, players will participate in a series of community/charity activities, including visiting the 2010 Shanghai EXPO, and the counseling of young players.

– After this training, the players will get a break to relax. Then one month before the start of the new season, the players will report back to the club to begin their preseason training.

Finally, it’s reported that the Sharks coach Bob Donewald, Jr. may be tapped to become the Chinese National Team coach, although Yao has him signed to a 3-year contract, but could release him from the contract temporarily. We’ll be following closely to see what happens.

This Houston Chronicle article was published tonight quoting Yao about his thoughts on the earthquake in China that has killed 600 and injured 10,000. The Yao Ming Foundation has collaborated with iTalkBB on a free hotline (1-877-482-5522 or www.iTalkBB.com) to help relatives of the victims. Here are some of Yao’s quotes from the article:

“I just wish (they will) get good (treatment) over there. I believe there are a lot of injuries. I hear there is a rescue team already there. I pray for them, and all the people there and all of their families.”

“It’s very important if you have people from there who are visiting somewhere else, maybe in the United States, I understand that they would like to contact their family. I would like to help.

“It just happened now, last night. We still don’t know (how to best help). There are a lot of questions. We need to do some research. Obviously, (rebuilding) the schools, we have some experience now. We can do better than last time.

Obviously, we’re going to search out as many as we can. I heard it last night (there was) an earthquake again. I know there is about 400 people lost in this disaster. I feel hurt, feel sad for them. I wish the rest of the people there, their family get good (treatment) over there, also their families. I believe in the future, we still need a lot of people’s help. Also, in the future, I’m going to find out what I can do to recover that area.”

As we reported on Sunday, Yao’s Shanghai Sharks team lost their playoff series to the Guangdong Tigers in four games, and he posted a note on his Facebook page about it.

Here’s a translation of an article from the Shanghai Morning Post that reflects on the Sharks’ dramatic improvement this past season, including beating the mighty Guangdong Tigers on their home court in Game 2, a place where the Tigers hadn’t lost a playoff game in at least six years. In the article, Yao said the following about the series and the Sharks’ improvement this season, “They have won a game (and the series), but we have won back a whole city.”

Last Wednesday, Yao and his wife Ye Li attended Shane Battier‘s Clutch City Karaoke Night to benefit the Boys and Girls Club of Houston.

Click here for more photos from the karaoke night.

Yao posted the following on his Facebook and Twitter page today after his Shanghai Sharks lost to the Guangdong Tigers today in Shanghai Sunday night.

Congrats to the Guangdong Tigers for their series win over my Sharks today. They showed everyone they are a great team. I am very proud of my players and their efforts. We have great fans, a great city, and I am already looking forward again to next season.

Guangdong won the series 3-1 and now advances to the next round.

I know most of the coverage of Yao the past week was mainly about his charity gala on Sunday, March 28th. But other things were going on in Yao’s world this week.

Yao’s Shanghai MAXXIS Sharks, the team he purchased before the season began, made the semifinals for the first time in eight years, beating the Liaoning Panpan Hunters in overtime last week. Yao watched the game from Houston on his computer early in the morning.

Former Rocket John Lucas III was outstanding, scoring 41 points in the game (12-of-25 FGs, 6-of-10 3-pointers, 11-12 from the line). Liu Wei, Yao’s best friend, scored 36 points on 15-of-24 shooting, and 5-of-8 from three).

You can tell by the photos below that the win was a big deal for the Sharks, who were “rock bottom” in the China Basketball Association last season and weren’t expected to do this well this season with a new and unproven coach.

Liu Wei

John Lucas III

Click here for more photos from the post-game celebration.

The Sharks are now playing the defending champions, the Guangong Hongyuan Dongguan Bank Tigers in the semifinals. Over the weekend, the Sharks lost Game 1 110-106. Former NBA player Smush Parker scored 40 points. Game Two is Wednesday in Dongguan, then the series goes to Shanghai.

Last Tuesday, Yao attended the Rockets-Wizards game at Toyota Center, and once again, was joined on the bench with the walking wounded: Shane Battier, David Anderson, Jared Jeffries, and Kevin Martin.

Here’s one more video from the Yao Charity Gala last Sunday, courtesy of Fox Sports Houston. This piece aired last night on the “Rockets Insider” show. It’s a pretty comprehensive story of what the event was all about.