Through our source Raymond in China, we have learned that Erik Zhang Mingji of “Team Yao” said today that Yao Ming has not yet decided to retire.

In addition, Lin Dalong, a Houston Rockets marketing manager who works in China, stated in an interview with the Xinhua News Agency said that the Houston Rockets had not received formal notice from Yao Ming or Team Yao about his retirement.

So there is a possibility that Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports, who broke the story earlier today, could be wrong. If so, this could be one of the most embarrassingly incorrect sports stories we have seen in a long time since all of the news networks and social media have been buzzing today about Yao’s alleged retirement today.

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Yao had some fun in Beijing earlier in the week when he was filmed for a promotional spot for China National Fitness Day (to be held August 8th), which also marks the third anniversary of the opening of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Raymond reports in the forum that Yao lost badly to the boy because Yao is just too tall for the sport, as you can see in the photos below!

For more photos from the table tennis match, click here.

Also earlier in the week, Yao was invited as a special observer to Shanghai Oriental TV’s semifinal of China’s Got Talent show (a licensed spin-off of Britain’s Got Talent) in the People’s Great Hall in Beijing on Sunday and Monday (June 19/20).

Click here for more photos and details of Yao at the show.

On Sunday, June 19th in Beijing, Yao Ming and actress Zhang Ziyi (both Global Ambassadors for Special Olympics China) attended a send-off ceremony for the delegation that will soon be leaving for Athens for the 2011 Special Olympics Games. Pictured below are both of them answering questions from the press.

For more photos from the send-off ceremony, click here.

Yao Ming and Zhang Ziyi will also go to Athens for the opening ceremony of the Games. Yao told reporters he is excited, and is looking forward to seeing his old pal Dikembe Mutombo, who is also a Global Ambassador for the Special Olympics.

After the ceremony at the China Administration of Sports for Persons with Disabilities, Yao Ming went to greet the basketball team, and track and field team.

Meanwhile, Zhang Ziyi went to greet the gymnastics team.

For more photos of Yao Ming and Zhang Ziyi meeting the teams, click here.

Raymond reports in the forum that Yao has been keeping busy the past couple of days in China. You have to give Yao credit for not just sitting around — that’s just not in his DNA

On Thursday, June 9th (China time), Yao flew to Jiuquan City of Gansu from Shanghai via Xian. After 10 hours of travel, he went straight to the Jiuquan Municipal Sports Academy without any rest.

For more photos from Yao’s visit to the sports academy, click here.

Waiting at the sports academy were approximately 20 students with intellectual disabilities who attend the Jiuquan Nash – Yao Foundation Special Education School that Yao’s Foundation funded and built. Since Yao is a Global Ambassador for Special Olympics, he conducted a basketball clinic for the students there.

One of the students of the school, Chen Xiaorong, will be representing China in the upcoming 13th Special Olympics to be held in Athens in June. Yao specifically picked her out, gave her a pair of running shoes, and encouraged Chen to believe in herself and give her best performance in Athens.

On Friday, June 10th, Yao presided over the inauguration ceremony at the school, which had been open a few months already, but Yao was there to commemorate its opening.

For more photos of Yao at the school, click here.

This is the first special education school in the city of Jiuquan for physically and intellectually disabled children. It cost 7 million RMB to build, co-funded by the Shanghai Special Care Foundation, the Yao Ming Foundation, Youth Development Foundation of Gansu Province, and People’s Government of the Suzhou District of Jiuquan City. The Shanghai Special Care Foundation (of which Yao Ming is one of the founders) and Yao Ming Foundation contributed 2.5 million RMB for the undertaking.

After the ceremony, Yao toured the facilities with municipal leaders from Jiuquan City.

Yao said he wished the completion of the special education school will provide the handicapped children the facilities they need to improve intellectually and physically, and urged that more attention be placed on special education requirements in society. Yao thanked his team, as well as Steve Nash, for their contribution and help in the undertaking.

Raymond reports in the forum the following about Yao:

He arrived back in China on Thursday, May 26th after staying in Houston the past 3 weeks, and brought his wife Ye Li and baby daughter Amy Yao Qinlei.

Because it is the first time that Amy Yao has ever been in China, a large number of reporters gathered at the VIP entrance of the Shanghai Pudong International Airport (as well as Yao Ming’s home), trying to get a glimpse of the family.

However, they were unsuccessful since Yao and family left through a different airport exit, and didn’t return to their old home in the Xuhui District but to a new home somewhere else. But there was at least one photo taken of Yao at the airport with an immigrations official.

According to sources at the airport, daughter Amy Yao uses a U.S. passport, and is a little bit taller than most one year old babies her age (no surprise there).

Given the looming NBA lockout for next season, and the fact that he will be a free agent this summer with his future in NBA still pending, it seems that Yao is going to stay in China at least through the summer according to his representative Erik Zhang Mingii.

Some of the things that are on his current schedule are the following:

• Organize a birthday party in Shanghai for his daughter, who just celebrated her first birthday in Houston on May 21st.
• Meetings with Team Yao about the team he owns, the Shanghai MAXXIS Sharks.
• Continue to work out details of the 3rd Yao Ming Foundation Charity Game/Gala, which will be held in Shanghai in August.
• An inauguration ceremony in Ganxu in June for another Yao Foundation Project Hope primary school.
• Towards end of June, he will travel to Athens with the Chinese Special Olympics delegation to attend the opening ceremony of the 2011 Special Olympics in Athens (June 25 ~ July 4) since he is the Global Ambassador of the Special Olympics
• Basketball and other commercial related activities in July and August
• Continued rehabilitation on his ankle.

Yao Ming has been back in China since late last week. He started off by attending the prestigious 2011 Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference, attended by major politicians and business leaders of various Asian countries.

He then held a basketball clinic at the Qionghai Sports Academy in Qionghai City of Hainan, where this photo was taken of an arena going crazy upon Yao’s appearance.

Yao will be in China for 2 to 3 weeks, then returning to Houston around early May.

You can checkout many more photos like this and all of the coverage of Yao in China in the forum, thanks to Raymond.

Last summer I had the opportunity to go to China and Taiwan to cover Yao’s Foundation Charity Tour. On that trip was Hasheem Thabeet, who was traded to the Rockets yesterday.

I shot lots of video of Yao and Hasheem on the court together in a Taipei gym in late July. As I watched them on the court together, a little part of me thought it was feasible one day that Yao could be a mentor of Hasheem’s on the same team, not just on a charity tour. That could happen if Yao signs with the Rockets again after this season, and the Rockets keep Thabeet.

One thing is for sure: if Thabeet can learn from Yao the same work ethic that made Yao such a good player, then Hasheem will have a chance to prove lots of his naysayers wrong.

In this video….

0:00 – Hasheem shows some athleticism as he does some spin moves to the basket.

0:54 – Yao and Hasheem take turns shooting jump hooks. Surprisingly, Hasheem shows some nice touch around the rim. Notice at the 2:23 mark how Yao gives Hasheem a tip by flicking his wrist more, presumably at the top of his jump, rather than hoisting it up, perhaps to avoid getting the shot blocked.

6:19 – Yao and Hasheem work on a variety of low post moves.

11:51 – Hasheem again shows some nice athleticism by scoring on a reverse breakaway dunk in the charity game he played in Taipei.

What’s nice to see in this video is that the Rockets FINALLY have someone who approaches Yao’s height in the middle of the lane. That’s got to be worth something.

I honestly don’t care if Hasheem becomes an option on offense for the Rockets. Houston has plenty of scorers to not require him to score. I just want him to be a defensive presence in the lane, block some shots, grab some boards, and not pick up cheap fouls. It will take some good coaching to get him to improve. Is Jack Sikma up to the task? Carroll Dawson? Hakeem Olajuwon?

Here is a great article from StreetballBlog.com that tells you everything you ever wanted to know about the state of basketball development in China. It’s kind of long, but it’s worth the read.

Here’s a video from CCTV5 that has a message from Yao Ming wishing everyone a Happy Chinese New Year (in both English and Mandarin). The video also includes a bunch of video of Yao in action to Avril Lavigne’s “When You’re Gone” that conveys to him that he is missed by all his fans in China, they wish him a Happy Chinese New Year, health in the Year of the Rabbit, and they await his return.

If the video doesn’t play in the player below, you can try viewing the video by clicking here.

In case you’re wondering why there haven’t been any posts on this site for the past few days while Yao and the Rockets have played two games in China (they won their second game just a few minutes ago), I have been in The Phillipines on a business trip. I’ve been so busy working, I haven’t had much time to write about the Rockets’ two games in China. But I have been able to watch most of them at a Chili’s on this country’s “Basketball TV” before crashing at the hotel after long days working.

I’m flying back to the U.S. in a few hours (just like the Rockets), so I gotta get out of this Chili’s and get some sleep before my flight…and I probably won’t be back online for another day or two.

In the meantime, you can check out in the forum Raymond’s coverage of the last two games right here.

Before going dark for a couple of days, I can tell you even though I have missed analyzing in depth the Rockets’ games in China, Filipinos know their NBA, just like in the States. I’ve been impressed, and it has helped fill my basketball fix while away.