July 18, 2008 3:09

Yao Ming Returns

Yao Ming shooting over Serbia's Boban Marjanovic. /FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/Getty Images

Yao Ming, whose NBA season ended in February when he injured his left foot, returned to play last night at an Olympic warm-up game in the Chinese city of Hangzhou. The All Star center’s first official game since undergoing surgery for a stress fracture should be a relief to his teammates on the Chinese national squad, countless Chinese fans and supporters of exciting basketball in general, a certain credit card company, athletic shoe-maker, fast food chain, soft drink company and so on.

Presumably not quite so elated are the Chinese side's competition. The Associated Press quotes the Serbian captain saying his team benefited from facing Yao, but 7-foot-3 center Boban Marjanovic, who Yao is shooting over in the photo at right, doesn't seem so happy about the experience. Yao scored 11 points in 12 minutes, and the Chinese team won the Stankovic Cup game 96-72.