http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=aw-yaorockets062909&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

Rockets could lose Yao for season, if not longer
By Adrian Wojnarowski, Yahoo! Sports
1 hour, 11 minutes ago


As the NBA draft approached, the grim truth about Yao Ming’s(notes) broken left foot hung like an anvil over the Houston Rockets. The fear isn’t that he’s just lost for next season, but longer.

The Rockets and Yao’s reps are frightened over his future, and the concern is the most base of all: Does Yao Ming ever play again?

“The realization has hit them that this is grave,” one NBA general manager said.


For now, the Rockets have privately told league peers it could be a full season before Yao might be able to return to basketball. Multiple league executives, officials close to Yao and two doctors with knowledge of the diagnoses are describing a troubling, re-fracture of his navicular bone. Three pins were inserted a year ago, but the foot cracked in the playoffs and isn’t healing.



“It sounds like he’s missing most of next season, if not the entire 82 games,” one league executive who has had recent discussions with the Houston front office told Yahoo! Sports. “That’s all that [the Rockets] will concede quietly, but they know it’s probably much worse.”

Houston general manager Daryl Morey refused comment on Monday and a team spokesman said the Rockets will not have further comment until Yao undergoes additional medical tests.

There’s no reason for the Rockets to disclose the severity of the injury, nor the uncertainty over Yao’s future. Before the Rockets go public with a dire diagnosis, they plan to send him to three more specialists this week, a source said. For now, the Rockets have season tickets and sponsorships to sell. For now, the Rockets will publicly decry these doomsday revelations as premature, but this is the reality that they’re working under within the organization.

This has turned into an impossible situation for the Rockets’ capable GM. Even if Yao plays again, Morey knows it’s just a matter of time until his lower body breaks down. His feet and ankles just can’t support the mobility of his 7-foot-6 frame.

With four surgeries in three years, the Rockets worried they were reaching a breaking point. Well, it’s here. After missing 86 games in the previous three seasons, the 28-year-old Yao missed a mere five this past regular season before injuring his foot during the Rockets’ second-round playoff series against the Los Angeles Lakers.


It wasn’t until last week when Houston issued a statement saying Yao’s fractured foot hadn’t healed properly, that he would be unavailable “indefinitely.” Prior to Thursday’s draft, Morey tried desperately to trade into the high lottery to take Spanish prodigy Ricky Rubio(notes). Houston needed a young star, but had too few assets to make a deal with Memphis or Sacramento. It seemed odd to teams that Houston had thrown Shane Battier(notes) and Aaron Brooks(notes) into offers within weeks of pushing the NBA champion Lakers to seven games in the Western Conference semifinals.


Now, the Rockets have tough decisions to make: Do they keep pushing Tracy McGrady(notes) and his expiring contract on the market or let the $22 million expire next summer? So far, Morey is getting offered bad contracts and junk talent for him. What’s more, does Houston re-sign Ron Artest(notes) to a $40 million-plus contract when contention is no longer viable? Why not create cap space for the summers of 2010 and 2011? Why not get younger now? Yao could opt out of his contract next summer, but odds are that Houston won’t so fortunate.


The Rockets should do themselves a favor and just start over. That isn’t easy in a sophisticated and rabid NBA market like Houston, but what everyone long suspected has reached fruition: Yao and McGrady are no longer a faulty foundation, but a collapsed one. Houston needs to proceed with an understanding that they’re no longer chasing the Lakers, but beginning again.


Rest assured, Houston has long been fearful that Yao’s responsibilities to the Chinese national team were rapidly contributing to his breakdown, and perhaps they’ve finally been met. Yao wouldn’t have missed the Beijing Olympics for the world, but it was clear he wasn’t fully healed in those Games. The Rockets paid a price for his nationalism, his obligation and now the darkest fears are close to confirmation: It isn’t just a season on the brink for Yao Ming, but perhaps a career.

Adrian Wojnarowski is the NBA columnist for Yahoo! Sports. Send Adrian a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast.
Updated 1 hour, 11 minutes ago
Posted Jun 27 2009

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Wow, wtf???

This poor guy's career is in serious jeopardy and I don't believe he's even 30 yet. I hope he beats the odds and comes back.

Sucks. Maybe Houston tears it down.

Funny that Houston will have enough cap space to reacquire Rudy Gay through Free agency in 2010.

[Edited by - AnubisADL on 06-29-2009 2:34 PM]

Posted by Vmart:

Yao will be back. He may need bone grafting much like McDyess got for the Patella. In Yao's case the navicular bone. Your looking at year or two for recover though. I feel for the guy.

I don't think it's that simple. Don't forget we're talking about a 7'5", 310-pound dude here.

Now the Knicks can finally trade for Yao! It was only a matter of time. Yes, we take your unwanted and used up stars. We work to help rehabilitate careers. Over millions of dollars served.

Posted by AnubisADL:

Posted by Pharzeone:

Now the Knicks can finally trade for Yao! It was only a matter of time. Yes, we take your unwanted and used up stars. We work to help rehabilitate careers. Over millions of dollars served.

See my sig.

That's because you guys are the same person.

Posted by Pharzeone:

Posted by nyk4ever:

Posted by AnubisADL:

Posted by Pharzeone:

Now the Knicks can finally trade for Yao! It was only a matter of time. Yes, we take your unwanted and used up stars. We work to help rehabilitate careers. Over millions of dollars served.

See my sig.

That's because you guys are the same person.

I haven't achieve omniscient just yet. I'm working on it though. Don't worry you'll be the first to know.

YES!

If we could get them to take Eddy, that would be amazing - doubt it will happen though, but it was the first thing that came to my mind.



[Edited by - oasisbu on 06-29-2009 3:59 PM]

Posted by Vmart:

Here is the Knicks opportunity to push Curry and Jefferies for T-Mac.

While this is certainly popping into all of our heads.... if Yao is done, and we know TMac is done, and Artest needs a contract --- would the Rockets be better off just starting over?

I think so.

They also tried to offer Battier and Brooks for Rubio and were turned down - the significance is - another major player in Battier was being shopped.

I think they need to start over. They can probably move Battier for at least a decent first round pick I would think.

It's a shame, I don't like the Rockets but I do like Yao.

Posted by BigSm00th:

this also means artest is likely to sign elsewhere.

i don't understand why they would want curry or jeffries, its not like either is young or would help them rebuild.

why would ANYONE want eddy? how badly do you have to hate the player you're trading for him to make that deal?