I know that the entire country of China is buzzing with anticipation of the upcoming game between the Houston Rockets and the Milwaukee Bucks. There is already a lot of hype surrounding the match-up between Yao and Yi Jianlan. I know firsthand how much China loves Yao and how much his countrymen support him, but I know there are a lot of Yi fans as well. Yi has played well so far in his first couple of NBA games. When I asked Yao about Yi, Yao said that he has never seen such an athletic player from China. Ever. Yao said that Yi is able to do things athletically that is unmatched in Chinese basketball. Yi runs and jumps like a small forward, yet can block shots like a 7 foot player. While I don't anticipate that they will guard each other during the game, it will be fun to see both Yao and Yi on the court at the same time.

I hear that this will be the most watched game in NBA history because of all the Chinese fans tuning in to see Yao and Yi. That is awesome! It is always cool to be a part of history. I know that both Yao and Yi will play extra hard because they know many of their countrymen have tuned in to see the action.

If you weren't planning on watching the game, please do! This will be a historic game and you will not want to miss it. I have a feeling that this is only the beginning of many Chinese born players squaring off against each other on the court. Chinese basketball is definitely improving and it is a testament to both Yao and Yi.

As for the rest of the Rockets, we are just going to try to win some more games. We are currently 4-1.  The best news about our team is that I don't feel we have played a great, consistent game yet. We have much room to improve. That is really exciting!

Well tune in to our game against the Bucks (although I know you will ALL be cheering for the Rockets!!!!!!!!!!!) and I will talk to you soon.

Your friend,

Shane
 
 译文如下——
 

 我知道整个中国都在关注即将到来的火箭与雄鹿的比赛。姚明和易建联的对决令人兴奋，这场比赛已经被炒得沸沸扬扬。我亲身感受过姚明在中国的人气，他的同胞是多么支持他，但我知道在中国也有许多易建联的球迷。易建联在头几场NBA比赛中发挥出色。当我询问姚明对阿联的看法，姚明说他从来没有见过第二个中国球员有易建联那样的运动天赋。姚明说易建联在中国国内赛场上已经找不到对手。易建联拥有小前锋一样出色的跑跳，但也能像一个7英尺大块头那样盖帽。虽然我不太想看到姚明和易建联在比赛中互相看防，不过能看到他们同时在场上本身就挺有趣。
 
 我听说这场比赛将成为NBA历史上收看人数最多的比赛，因为所有中国球迷都不会错过姚易对决。太恐怖了！能成为创造历史时刻的一分子，这种感觉挺酷。我知道姚明和易建联都会格外卖力，因为他们知道有多少同胞在观看直播。
 
 如果你还没打算看这场比赛的话，那我提醒你：请一定要看！这将是一场历史性的比赛，你肯定不想错过。我预感这场比赛将开启中国球员NBA赛场真正对决的大幕。因为中国篮球正在飞速发展，姚明和易建联都证明了这一点。
 
 对于火箭队的其他球员来说，我们会继续努力赢得更多比赛。我们现在是4胜1负。有一个好消息要告诉大家：我觉得我们本赛季还没打过一场真正出色的比赛。我们还有提升的空间。这实在令人兴奋！
 
 请关注我们与雄鹿的比赛（我知道你们都会为火箭加油！！！！！！！！！！！），回见！
 
 你的哥们，
 
 肖恩