Videos: Yao Ming’s Top 10 NBA Moments

Thirty-three years ago, a man-child was born in Shanghai, China. Yao Ming, arguably one of the most dominant centers (during his relatively short career), celebrates his birthday today. Though his career ended rather quickly (the stress of being a 7-6 big man took its toll on his feet in particular), he helped change the NBA landscape and opened the NBA to a brand new fanbase in China.

Yes, China loved Jordan and Kobe, but Yao was the first Chinese player to be relevant in the NBA. His career averages may not scream “wow!” (19.0 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 1.9 bpg), but during his 8-year career, Yao Ming was the first (and probably last) of his kind. Will we ever see another 7-6, 310-pounder with a soft shooting touch and above average passing ability in our lifetime?

Jeff Van Gundy, Yao’s former coach, once told Grantland’s Jonathan Abrams the following about Yao: “People are saying he was pretty good. No, he was dominant. He could play. You could make the case he didn’t do it for long enough to be considered an all-time great. But this guy was dominant when he played. In his age group, he was the best center — when healthy.”

With all that considered, it felt necessary to take a look back at some of the best moments of his career in honor of the big man’s birthday.

click here to see the top 10 moments in videos: Dime Magazine (dimemag.com) : Daily NBA News, NBA Trades, NBA Rumors, Basketball Videos, Sneakers » Blog Archive Yao Ming’s Top 10 NBA Moments.