According to Greg Logan, they still need some luck in the lottery draw or a bold move to trade up at draft time to have a chance of landing 7-5 Yao Ming, but the presentation the Knicks staged for Yao at a private dinner Tuesday night in Chicago left no doubt about the intensity of their interest in the Chinese center.

"They put on a great show for Yao Ming," a close associate of Yao's said yesterday. "They made a video presentation of the team and the city that was very impressive."

The Knicks are planning video presentations for all of the top prospects that they bring in for workouts at their Purchase College practice facility before the draft, but this one was special. It was narrated in Chinese and intended to convey the message that they are interested not only in Yao but in all top Chinese prospects.