HOUSTON , April 4 (Xinhua) -- Former Houston Rockets center Yao Ming was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2016 on Monday for his role to help spread the NBA's popularity to China.
announcing this at a press event in Houston on Monday, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame said that Yao Ming, who is from China, changed the face of global basketball as a respected player and ambassador of the game.