Basketball legend Yao Ming has officially stepped down as president of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA), passing the baton to Vice President Guo Zhenming. The announcement Thursday ends Yao’s seven-year leadership era – a roller-coaster journey mixing slam dunks and free-throw misses for Chinese hoops. 🏆⚡
Since taking charge in 2017, the former Houston Rockets All-Star oversaw historic wins for China’s women’s team, including back-to-back Asian Games gold medals and a 2022 World Cup silver. But the men’s team struggled under his tenure, missing three Olympic appearances and failing to crack the FIBA World Cup top 16 twice. 🏀💔
Fans are flooding social media with tributes to Yao, praising his “NBA-to-administration glow-up” while debating if his exit could revive the men’s program. New president Guo Zhenming now faces a full-court press to level up China’s basketball game globally. 🚀🌟
