Yao Ming has been struggling with injuries ever since he made it to the NBA. But truth be said, he has been battling with injuries since his years rookie year playing for the Shangai Sharks in the Chinese Basketball Association. By the time Yao was 17, he had broken his foot twice. He was fully capable of recovering completely and it has been said that since that second injury, he lost some 10 to 15 inches worth of his jumping ability.
When Yao came to play in the NBA, he was the first foreign player ever to be picked as the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft, without ever playing in an NCAA affiliated college beforehand. Now, he did not have it easy coming into the NBA. He had to deal with many unsporting commentaries from both the specialized press (who can forget Charles Barkley’s encounter with a donkey’s buttock after Yao scored his first 20 points in a single game).
Yet not only commentators gave him a hard time, even teams have been a bit harsh on him. The Miami Heat gave out 8000 fortune cookies to the fans on their first game against Yao Ming and the Rockets. As if that was not enough, there where the now infamous and somewhat rude and offensive (to say the least) pregame comments from Shaquille O’Neal.
Now, the issues come when you consider that the Rockets have only make it past the first round of the Playoff’s once since Yao has been playing for the Rockets. He has had to deal with many injuries, and considering this last foot surgery, which seemed at its moment as a drastic reconstruction of his foot, he has missed many games in each season.
Yao has not played since July 2009, and he is not eager to make his comeback. Doctors have gave him the thumbs up, but head coach Rick Adelman has been warned that Yao should only play 24 minutes per game. Yao is aware that he needs to take it easy. Recovering from such a complex procedure takes time, and there is no need to put more stress then what it is ultimately necessary on his foot.
The Houston Rockets begin their training camp this week. The team will play its first exhibition game on against the Orlando Magic on October 5th. Perhaps we will be able to see Yao take on a couple minutes worth of play.
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