China's NBA star Yao Ming has resumed training after he took surgery and he looked good for the Beijing Olympics, said his teammate on Wednesday.
Yi Jianlian of China poses with his New Jersey Nets basketball jersey after a news conference in East Rutherford, New Jersey July 9, 2008.
"Yao just came back to the team. We are better than ever compared to the last couple of years," said Yi Jianlian, another NBA star from China, at a press conference in New Jersey.
"He (Yao) is much better right now, he's very healthy right now," he said. "We practiced a couple of days before I came here."
Speculation was on about possibility of Yao attending the Beijing Olympics after he suffered a stress fracture in his left foot. He was forced to suspend his season with NBA Houston Rockets for the injury.
Last month, he said that he had been 80 percent recovered and expected to go back to games in mid-July.
Yi, who was acquired by the New Jersey Nets from the Milwaukee Bucks last month, said at the press conference that the Olympic basketball tournament is his current priority.
When asked about his expectation on the grand sport event to beheld in his hometown, Yi said that he believed the Chinese men's team could be "at least top eight" and his team would "try to get maybe top six or something".
In the first Olympic game, Chinese men's basketball team will play with the United States, which was considered as a tough competition for the host.
"It's a very tough game but I'm excited and looking forward to playing the U.S.," said Yi.
(Xinhua News Agency July 10, 2008)