Starting your day right with China’s favorite street breakfast and a bunch of links…

• As Rockets fans in both the States and China know, Yao Ming has taken a while, almost a month to be exact, to come back from a bone bruise in his left ankle.  Aaron Brooks has been out of the lineup for about a month, too with an ankle sprain.  So it should come as good news that both of them have set target dates, Yao on Tuesday against Detroit and Brooks on Friday against Milwaukee, for their return.  In Yao’s case though, setting a return date is no good if you don’t tell your head coach, or if you’re a blogger that thinks the Rockets, big guy or no big guy, are just not a very good basketball team this year.

• China’s other injured NBA baller, Yi Jianlian, is already back for the Wizards.

• Less than a week away from their season opener and Jiangsu Nangang’s key core of veterans are still holding out for better contracts.  According to the Yangtse Evening Post, the main issue involves bonus payouts.  Ownership will pay out only if the team finishes in the top three, while the players want guaranteed payments if they finish top five.  Those who are unsigned won’t play until the team first agrees with Chinese national team center, Tang Zhengdong.  Tang, upset that the team won’t write in a clause that would allow him to switch teams next year into his contract, didn’t wear his mandatory uniform to a press conference and hasn’t practiced with the team since he returned from the Asian Games in Guangzhou last week.

• Newly signed Beijing Duck, Steve Francis, who hasn’t arrived yet in China, is expected to join up with his team soon, but won’t be ready to play in their first two games, including their home opener on the 15th.  But, that won’t mean fans won’t get a chance to get in on some fresh Franchise gear: At halftime this year, cheerleaders and mascots will be tossing Francis signed sweatshirts, hats and scarfs into the stands for fans to grab.  If you have short arms or you have trouble catching things, you can buy all that stuff in the pro-shop inside the stadium if you so choose.

• This is kind of amazing: Jeremy Lin’s 12th appearance of the season against Phoenix last Thursday nudged him by former New York forward, Ed Smith, as Harvard’s number two all-time leader in NBA games played.  Even more amazing? Lin only needs to get on the court 32 more times to overtake Saul Mariaschin as number one.

• hoopCHINA says that Patrick O’Bryant is very close to being released by Fujian.  According to team sources, O’Bryant is being punished inside both in practice and in pre-season games, and has become less and less willing to go inside on offense, choosing instead to stand mostly on the perimeter.  This poses various problems for the team, first and foremost being that they signed O’Bryant to play center, not guard.  A source with NiuBBall.com confirmed hoopCHINA’s report that management is looking to back Chris Porter, who played with the team last year.