The Legacy of Yao

Earlier today, reports surfaced that Yao Ming has decided to retire from the NBA, due to knee and ankle injuries that have robbed him of all but five games last season. Yao had been dealing with injuries over the past several years, having surgeries on his feet and ankles in an attempt to be able to keep playing.

Over his eight year career, Yao averaged 19 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 1.89 blocks per game. However, his contribution to basketball, and the NBA, goes beyond the numbers. Yao, while not the first Chinese basketball export (that would be Wang Zhi Zhi), was the most prominent. His playing ability, as much as his size and presence, helped to further the international growth of the NBA. Yao was already a beloved figure in China prior to coming over the the US to play in the NBA; afterwards, he became legendary.

To some, Yao's career may be a bit of a disappointment due to his injury issues, but look at what he accomplished. He was an All-Star every year he was in the league. He made the All-Rookie team. Three times he was an All-NBA third team member, and twice made All-NBA second team. If anything, the most disappointing part of his career was that the Rockets did not truly take advantage of one skill that Ming had - his ability to pass the ball. Yao Ming was a great passer, perhaps even the best passing center since Arvydas Sabonis in his prime. The Sabonis that eventually came over to Portland was merely a shell - look him up on YouTube in his younger days and you will see a truly great player. His greatest asset was his ability to pass the ball, and Yao was almost as talented there as he was. Only Houston could never figure out a way to utilize that skill.

So, the question will inevitably be asked if Yao is a Hall of Fame player or not. He is fairly borderline as a player looking at the raw statistics. Yet Yao is bigger than the numbers. He helped bring the NBA into the Asian market. Roughly 200 million Chinese would watch the NBA on CCTV, their television network. 50 million of those were strictly for Rockets games, just to watch Yao. He essentially brought to Houston the equivalent of not one major market city, but FIVE. At a time when the NBA is claiming that 22 of their teams lost money, Yao helped bring major revenue to Houston. He helped further the globalization of the game that David Stern keeps promoting. Yao was one of, if not THE face, of international basketball.

Will Yao make the Hall? He should. If not as a player, he definitely deserves to as a contributor to the game. Furthering the appeal of the NBA overseas, and for being the driving force behind their ability to tap into the Asian market is more than enough for enshrinement in Springfield.