Yao also hosted the NBA Nation FIT clinic for 60 unprivileged students together with Jimmy Butler of the Chicago Bulls in Shanghai a few days later.

"Social responsibility is the core value of the NBA. Since 2004, we've participated in over 100 community outreach initiatives here in China through a broad range of activities from education and fitness to youth development," said Shoemaker.

Yao echoed Shoemaker, saying NBA support is crucial to his charity work.

"I actually started my partnership with the NBA in 2002 when I joined the NBA as a player," said Yao in July.

"Commissioner Stern and the entire NBA are very supportive of our charity efforts, including the charity game and the Hope School Basketball season. I want to thank the NBA for their great support."

The partnership with Yao demonstrates the NBA's rich history and long-term commitment to basketball development in China.

NBA first hosted the Chinese national team in 1985 and is currently in the fourth year of a joint coaching program with the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) which has trained more than 600 coaches.

In September 2011, the CBA Dongguan Basketball School – an NBA Training Center was launched for elite players aged from 12 to 17. Since then, the school has trained over 1,000 youth players and coaches.

"Our partnership with Yao complements an already broad array of things that we've been doing with the GAS (General Administration of Sport of China), CBA and local sports bureaus in order to continue to grow the game of basketball," said Shoemaker.

"We believe strongly in the work we are doing at the grassroots level and developing the game so that more and more kids want to bounce the ball and shoot a hoop at the youngest level. That's a priority for us and I believe that is the key for making China a great basketball nation."