18 | Shanghai Sharks: Yao Ming Finds a Coach

Yao Ming was the number one pick in the 2002 NBA Draft, and he came in with the hope of the entire country of China behind him. Basketball had become a hugely successful American export in the country, and Ming was the face of the confluence between cultures and continents. But after his playing career ended, Ming flipped the script, bringing a talented but largely unproven coach from the US to China to head up the Shanghai Sharks, a professional basketball team Ming bought in 2009. Reporter Kerry Seed follows coach Bob Donewald’s search for basketball salvation and success in Shanghai.

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