China's most popular basketball player made history last night, becoming the first foreign-born No. 1 NBA draft pick.

The 7-foot-5 Yao Ming, who has piqued the interest of almost every basketball team in the country since competing in the 2000 Summer Olympics, will leave Shanghai for Houston, where he could start next season.

'This is a new start in my basketball and life career,'' Yao said through an interpreter. 'There will be a new challenge for me. I am confident I will learn from the NBA and improve myself.''

It was no surprise that Houston wanted Yao, but the team didn't receive clearance from the Chinese national team that Yao would be available until early yesterday morning.

Yao, 21, will continue working in Beijing with the national team until October, when the Asian Games end. He will train with the Houston Rockets intermittently and then join the team for its regular Fall training camp.

Yao averaged 32.4 points, 18.9 rebounds, 4.5 blocked shots and 1.5 steals per game for the Shanghai Sharks last season. The NBA is more competitive than China's league, but Rockets general manager Carroll Dawson said Yao should have few problems transitioning.

'He's got quickness, he's got great size, he's got agility. He shoots the ball with range. He makes 3-pointers. On of the skill part of it, he was blessed with a lot of talent,' Dawson said during a press conference. 'We think he's got a tremendous upside and that as he matures he will get much, much better.

Some question whether Texas will welcome Yao with open arms, but Dawson doesn't have any concerns.

'We're the fourth-largest city in America now with over five million people and they tell me that the Asian population is well over a quarter-million,' he said. 'I know that we've heard from a lot of people already and that the excitement is almost out of control.'