The Shanghai Sharks have been sold to the Shanghai Jiushi Group, with Yao Ming selling his entire stake and quitting as boss. The team will be renamed the Shanghai Jiushi Basketball Club. Yao Ming purchased the Shanghai Sharks in 2009 for 20 million yuan. In early 2016, he sold 40% of the team's shares to four companies, and then bought them back at the start of this year. The Shanghai Jiushi Group, which has assets of over 400 billion yuan, will increase its investment in the team. The team's new legal representative will be Fan Jianlin, the general manager of Jiushi's investment and development department. Yao Ming's wife, Ye Li, and the team's former general manager, Zhang Mingji, have left the team's board of directors. Former vice general manager Qian Anke will become the team's new general manager. Yao Ming, a former player for the NBA's Houston Rockets, became the chairman of the Chinese Basketball Association in February 2017 and the chairman of the CBA League Beijing Sports in July of the same year. The Shanghai Sharks were founded in 1996 and have won one CBA championship. The team's new name will be the Shanghai Jiushi Basketball Club. The Shanghai Jiushi Group will increase its investment in the team in an effort to make it a strong team. Yao Ming stated that he quit as boss to avoid being an athlete and a referee at the same time. The Shanghai Sharks players will work hard in the new season to achieve better results. The team's new general manager, Qian Anke, stated that he will fully support the team's development. The investment from the Shanghai Jiushi Group will bring new vitality to the team. The Shanghai Sharks will show a new face in the new season.