Yao Ming (center, Houston Rockets) has dramatically popularized basketball and the National Basketball Association in China.

In fact, huge television audiences for basketball games during the 2008 Beijing Olympics (particularly the China-US men's match) have led many to believe that basketball is on its way to becoming the most played and watched sport in China.

American YMCA workers introduced Basketball to China in 1896, roughly five years after the organization had invented the game in Springfield, Massachusetts.

The first professional team in China was a team that started in Shenyang and was sponsored by the Anshan Steel Company. The Chinese Basketball Association was established in 1995 and in 2008 it expanded to 18 teams.

The United States has noticed the size and skill of Chinese players, especially after the success of Yao Ming.

In 2007, Yi Jianlian, was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks sixth overall pick in the NBA Draft. Then on 2008, Sun Yue became the latest Chinese to join the NBA by signing with the Los Angeles Lakers. He was part of the Lakers' championship team.

Since the arrival of Houston Rockets superstar Yao Ming in the NBA in 2002, basketball has grown considerably in the world's most populated country. Some experts estimate that as many as 300 million of China's 1.3 billion population play basketball.

Basketball bets are easy to make. The three most common basketball bets are point spread bets, money line beta and totals bets.

For point spread bets, the team wagered on must win by the point spread given at the time the bet is placed. Due to changing circumstances (player injuries, etc) and betting trends, the point spread may fluctuate at any time.

For Money Line bets, the team wagered on just has to win the game. The amount that bettors lay or take for each game may vary. The money line that is read at the time of the bet is the money line kept regardless of any line movement.

Lastly, in a totals bet, bettors must bet on whether the actual combined scores of the two teams will either be over or under a certain pre-determined number, called the total for the game.