Section B
Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. You should decide on the best choice.
Yao Ming's preseason performances, however, were questionable, and left many wondering why he was the first overall pick. He started the regular season on the bench, and seemed to be a long project and years away from becoming a major contributor to the team. However, he began to turn things around in mid-November. In a against the Los Angeles Lakers, he scored 20 points, all of his shots (9 field goals and two flee throws) against one of the best teams in the NBA. This performance led to a memorable televised incident where TNT basketball yst Charles Barkley, having lost a bet in which he stated Yao wood never score 20 points in a for the season, was supposed to literally kiss the ass of TNT co-yst Kenny Smith, but was forced to fulfill the bet on a donkey brought onto the TV set by Smith. Two s later, against the Rockets' in-state rival Dallas Mavericks, he deposited 30 points and grabbed 16 rebounds in a that showed that Yao could definitely play as a starter. By the end of the month, Yao was firmly entrenched in the starting lineup.
By December and January, Yao was proving to be a highly consistent starter. He put up only a few big s, largely because he didn't play as many minutes in s, but he helped his team whenever he took to the court. ually, he was perceived as a rival to the Lakers' star center Shaquille O'Neal, turning Rockets/Lakers s into Yao vs. Shaq s. O'Neal was criticized for comments he made before the season when asked about the matchups (对手), as he told a reporter to leave Yao a message which mimicked the Chinese language. Yao took it in his stride, and eased the situation by joking that 'Chinese is a hard language to learn.'
That sort of good humour and light-heartedness off the court, plus his reputation for being very personable, made him extremely popular among fans. His likeability inspired a catchy song in the Houston area by artists Chance McClain and Kevin Ryan (loosely based on the popular 'Ole' chants you wood hear at a European football ), and Yao quickly became one of the league's most marketable players. Featured in advertisements of Apple, Gatorade, and a popular Super Bowl ad for Visa, it did not take long for 'Yan Ming' to become a household name.
How does the author comment on Yao's performance during the preseason?

A.Just so-so.