Yao was pretty busy a few days ago in China. On October 15th he held a press conference in Beijing with NBA commissioner David Stern and other head honchos to announce the creation of the “NBA Yao School” in Beijing.

The NBA Yao School, launching in February 2014, will provide after-school basketball training and fitness programs for boys and girls up to age 16 at all skill levels. The school aims to teach the importance of teamwork, leadership and communication in a fun basketball environment.

This announcement marks another milestone in the partnership between NBA China and Yao to develop youth basketball and create social responsibility programs in China. For more details about the NBA Yao School and video from the press conference, click here.

After the press conference, Yao attended a preseason game between Golden State and the L.A. Lakers in Beijing. Sitting next to him was friend and former Chinese teammate Sun Yue.

Yao ran into good friend Steve Nash at the game…

A couple of days later, Yao went to join the LA Lakers at an NBA Cares activity as well as an Open Day fan gathering at the Shanghai Oriental Sports Centre. Just like in Taipei, the target group for the NBA Cares activity was also 60 kids from the Chinese Special Olympics team.

Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Steve Nash and all the LA Lakers players were there to teach the kids basketball fundamentals.

Click here for more photos of Yao with Kobe, and other pics from the NBA Cares event in Shanghai.

In case you missed Jeremy’s game in Taipei, Taiwan, we have put together a highlight reel from his incredible game against the Pacers on Sunday. I love the reactions from the crowd!

And here is a clip of Jeremy checking out of the game to a rousing ovation…

This past weekend Yao went to Taipei to meet up with Jeremy Lin and the Rockets since they were in town to play the Indiana Pacers for a preseason game on Sunday, October 13th. Below are just a small sample of photos that are in the forum.

Here is Yao with Jeremy at a welcome reception on Friday…

It looks like Jeremy was able to get out and do some shopping without being swamped since he was in disguise…

But it looks like a couple of people identified him and were able to get a pic with him…

The next day, Yao, Jeremy and other Rocket players participated in an activity with mentally and physically disabled children who were part of the Chinese Taipei Special Olympics team…

Click here for more photos of Rockets with the Special Olympics kids

Yao was able to take some shots, like old times (Clyde Drexler and Robert Horry were also there)…

Later that night, Yao and the Rockets attended a fancy party at the Okura Prestige in Taipei. Below Yao shows how much he dwarfs Dwight Howard…

Click here for more photos from the party where it looks like a great time was had by many of the Rocket players, and even GM Daryl Morey.

Prior to joining his teammates at the Okura Prestige, Jeremy attended the premiere of his movie “Linsanity” in Taiwan….

A few days before on October 7th, the Rockets arrived in Manila to play their first preseason game against the Pacers (click here for more photos from their time in Manila)…

James Harden getting off the plane…

Jeremy takes a photo of fans who waited for him and the Rockets at the airport in Manila…

Jeremy sits on a jeepney…

Jeremy is surrounded by a throng of media at their practice court…

Click here for more photos of the Rockets in Manila.

Here’s a clip of Rockets head coach Kevin McHale’s comments about Jeremy Lin after his game in Manila in which the Rockets beat the Pacers…

In case you didn’t know, Jeremy Lin’s movie “Linsanity” opens this Friday, October 4th, in select cities, including Houston (of course). We understand that Yao is prominently featured in the film and makes the most poignant statement in the film (near the end) that is very emotional.

Jeremy was covered by the filmmaker before Linsanity ever took the world by storm, dating back to his days at Palo Alto High School, then Harvard, then on to Golden State and New York. So it’s not like this is just a film with highlights and news coverage. You get to see what it was like when not many people knew who he was. Here’s a review of the film from ESPN’s Truehoop blog.

Here’s a link to the official movie site. You can see a few cities where it will be playing on this page, which include Chicago, L.A., New York, San Diego, San Francisco, DC, Seattle, Boston, Honolulu, Philadelphia, and even in Taiwan.

Here’s a link to the official Facebook page. And here’s a link to the promotional video on Youtube, or you can watch the embedded version below:

If you’re in Houston, here are the theaters where it will be playing:

1) Sundance Cinema at 510 Texas Ave – [link: click on “Buy Tickets” link on the left]

2) AMC Studio 30 at 2949 Dunvale Ave – [link to Oct. 4th tickets]

Make sure to go see the movie within a week of the Friday, October 4th release date since it’s only a one-week run at both theaters. There is a chance it could be extended another week, but go see it the first week just in case.