Yao first tried out for the Shanghai Sharks junior team of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) when he was thirteen years old, and practiced ten hours a day for his acceptance.
Yao kemudian mencoba masuk tim basket junior Shanghai Sharks, anggota Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) ketika ia berusia 13 tahun, dan berlatih 10 jam sehari agar diterima di tim basket tersebut.