Yao Ming is back in China with the Houston Rockets which is scheduled to play two NBA preseason games this week against the New Jersey Nets.

The two matches will be played in Beijing tonight and in Guangzhou in Guangdong Province on Saturday.

Rockets coach Rick Adelman was unhappy about the timing of the games, saying it affected the team's preparation for the new season, which starts a week after the China matches.

He, however, did add that the games were important to both China and the Rockets and hoped for a better arrangement next time.

The Rockets lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night.

Yao sat out the match as part of his recovery from a foot surgery which forced him out of the season last year. The Shanghai native played 12 minutes in each of the Rockets first three preseason games. He scored 10 points in Saturday's 126-92 victory over the Indiana Pacers.

The Beijing game was already sold out while a 6,000 yuan (US$899) VIP ticket was tagged 18,000 yuan on taobao.com, the biggest online shopping platform.