姚明(1980年9月12日-)，前中国篮球运动员，生于中国上海，祖籍为江苏苏州，是原中国国家篮球队队员，曾效力于中国篮球职业联赛(cba)上海大鲨鱼篮球俱乐部和美国国家篮球协会(nba)休斯敦火箭。获7次nba“全明星”，被美国《时代周刊》列入“世界最具影响力100人”， “体育运动荣誉奖章”“中国篮球杰出贡献奖”。同时也是世界最知名的华人运动员之一。2009年，姚明收购上海男篮，成为上海大鲨鱼篮球俱乐部老板。 2011年7月20日，姚明正式宣布退役。
yao ming (born september 12, 1980) is a retired chinese professional basketball player who last played for the houston rockets of the national basketball association (nba). at the time of his final season, he was the tallest active player in the nba, at 2.29 m (7 ft 6 in).
yao, who was born in shanghai, china, started playing for the shanghai sharks as a teenager, and played on their senior team for five years in the chinese basketball association (cba), winning a championship in his final year. after negotiating with the cba and the sharks to secure his release, yao was selected by the houston rockets as the first overall pick in the 2002 nba draft. yao was selected to start for the western conference in the nba all-star game eight times, and was named to the all-nba team five times. he reached the nba playoffs four times, and the rockets won a first-round series in the 2009 postseason, their first playoff series victory since 1997. however, yao missed 250 regular-season games due to foot and ankle injuries in his final six seasons.
he is one of china's best-known athletes, with sponsorships with several major companies. his rookie year in the nba was the subject of a documentary film, the year of the yao, and he co-wrote, along with nba analyst ric bucher, an autobiography titled yao: a life in two worlds.