Friday, July 8th, 2011 at 1:52 pm  |  94 responses

Yao Ming Is Retiring

by Ryne Nelson

Yao is officially calling it quits after not being able to fully recover from numerous foot operations. It’s a bittersweet moment for NBA fans, as the League is losing a player who was both a great teammate and person.

Per Yahoo!: “Rockets’ Yao Ming has decided to retire from the NBA, league sources tell Y! Sports. He informed the league office within past 48 hours.”

Yao was a giant on the court and had a huge skill set to match. Yao’s the reason many Chinese fans focused their attention on the NBA, and now the League is devoting much attention to selling its game in China.

Thank you, Yao, for everything. We’re gonna play the Yao Ming song for a while…

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  • Myung

    They’re half black and half Asian. Actually, you guys did get Tiger in the racial draft. For shizzle.

  • Myung

    Kobe Bean Bryant’s NAME is 1/3 Japanese. He is 0/4 Asian.

  • http://Philosophervision@blogspot.com The Philosopher

    I’ll bet that Tiger Woods will admit that he’s Black nowadays.

  • http://thetroyblog.com Teddy-the-Bear

    Wow… This is crazy. Such a shame he couldn’t have a longer career–he was the best center in the league hands down for a few years, and he’s also the best center post-Shaq the league has seen when healthy. This guy is the reason I became a Rockets fan, and now that he’s retiring, I don’t think that will change. Finally seeing the Rockets break out of the first round and take the Lakers to 7 games was one of my favorite NBA moments of the past decade, and probably ever as a basketball fan. It was a great but all too short run. Thanks for the memories, Yao.
    Also, being that I’m Chinese, it can’t be ignored the impact he has had on the league internationally, as well as at home. China has caught a lot of flack for working him so much during the off-season, and this is somewhat valid, BUT what most people don’t realize is that he never once complained–in fact he did everything willingly because he genuinely loves his country. And that, folks, is super-cool. This guy is the Michael Jordan of basketball for China, and I’m not saying that in a disparaging, half-laughingmyassoff manner the way I would if I were talking about Hedo Turkoglu. This guy transcended the game off-court on the level of any of the past greats, and I don’t think this is the last we’ll be seeing of him. The league will hook him up with some sort of position a la Dikembe Mutombo. And who knows, maybe we’ll find him coaching the Chinese team or teaching other big men in the league the way Hakeem and Ewing have done.
    Either way, heal up big fella, and enjoy your time away from basketball with your family.

  • http://thetroyblog.com Teddy-the-Bear

    Since you guys are playing the draft, Patrick Chung is the undisputed GOAT of Chinese NFL players.

  • Todd Spehr

    You would’ve thought a lockout might have been actually beneficial to Yao, what with the ample time to continue to heal his foot and all. Not to be, I guess.

  • http://Philosophervision@blogspot.com The Philosopher

    Teddy:
    Eloquent.

  • TheBarberShop

    Good riddance. I for one was tired of him. Good guy, I wish him well, but, at this point all he did was take up space on the bench.

  • tavoris

    tough seeing the good guys go…and Yao is one of the good guys

  • Ronald

    @Teddy: Definitely. Chung is amazing. Didnt he have a punt block return for TD this season? Dude is good. Sad that no one outside the states knows who he is. He could help bring the NFL to China. It’s sad that Yao is retiring. So damn freaking sad.

  • http://www.youtube.com/user/officerbarbrady what

    Not a Rockets fan and not Chinese, but this sucks. Yao at his peak was the league’s best center. He deserved to get farther in the playoffs than he did in his career.

  • http://www.facebook.com/joe.l.brewer3 BlackPhantom

    Dang. I’m gonna miss him. If he weren’t injury prone he wouldv’e been a dominant force for so long

  • http://bulls.com airs

    NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

  • Jose

    How quickly, we’ve lost two of the greatest Centers to retirement in roughly 3 months with yao and shaq. . . so sad

  • A Acosta

    HOFer in my opinion. No one had a bigger impact on the NBA than Yao and he did it with true class. Hope to see him play again.

  • jufu

    i think a little part of me has died this summer with him and shaq…

  • http://thetroyblog.com Teddy-the-Bear

    Here are some actual videos of Yao playing ball. Do not moderate these, SLAM, they’re perfectly fine!
    2005-2006 season against the Lakers–Kobe had 43 points, Yao with an insanely efficient 33:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltuYZWj89bw
    Yao single-handedly owning the Wizards, also hits gamewinner:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHaW_gtRqjo
    Yao vs. Dwight Howard:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFppQfs75Ro&feature=related
    A rookie Yao Ming vs. Dallas (and Steve Nash lol):
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnEAy9WpowA&feature=related

  • http://thetroyblog.com Teddy-the-Bear

    Here a few more…
    Yao vs. Dwight again, but showing the stats between all of their head-to-head matchups:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PiiKXEj-TEU&feature=related
    Sorry, another one–Yao vs. a really young (I think sophomore) Dwight:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAaV9JrzLvk&feature=related
    Yao vs. Blazers, Game 1 of the 2009 First Round playoffs. One of his best games ever, despite not playing for much of the second half:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtozD85NnTs&feature=fvwrel
    Yao and the Rockets beating the Lakers in Game 1 of the second round:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iI7UiIDkl2U
    There you go.

  • http://slamonline.com Ugh

    Seeing Yao, Franchise and T-Mac all together there pointed out to me just how hard Houston had it with injuries. That’s just heinous hard luck.

  • TheNightWatch*8*

    Dang. Ima Miss U Yao. Best of luck in retirement

  • dma

    i think the worse part of this is that the nba won’t pay tribute to him because of this lockout nonsense.

  • http://www.twitter.com/JoshElam JE

    Godspeed, Yao. Hopefully you’ll get to play again someday, even if it’s not in the NBA.

  • lockon

    hope injuries didnt get this guy. too early. another guy who went down like penny. another possible reason for his retirement is the lockout (no politics). maybe he hanged it up thinking there might not even be a next season. thanx for all big guy. hope to see you soon.

  • http://twitter.com/hurstysyd Hursty

    This is awful.
    Thankyou Yao.
    Happy trails.

  • http://www.optimabbc.be Max

    YAO MING YAO MING YAO MING YAO MING
    YAAAOOO MIIING!!

  • NolanSmith

    A guy you could always look up too…

  • http://facebook.com/tronjohnson Chief

    Him and the Shogun are gone? This league sucks

  • brandon

    thats sad but to watch him play was amazing

  • Sam

    @thakidnoah china isnt a town its a country….

  • http://www.slamonline.com UNFROZEN CAVEMAN LAWYER

    ENIGMATIC, IT WAS SHAQS FIRST THREE SHOTS THAT YAO SWATTED. ……YAO

  • http://www.facebook.com/joe.l.brewer3 BlackPhantom

    Is Yao a Hall of Famer?

  • flash

    sh** first the lockout and then this happens! not a good trend for the nba. fans be doomed :(

  • http://www.kb24.com The Seed

    Yao Ming was a godd player, he is not Hall of Fame player. His career was too short. His average of 19 and 9 was nice. Rockets should retire his jersey, but HOF is not in his future unless they add another wing. BOOK IT!!!

  • Towelie

    Yao Ming is Lil Wayne

  • http://www.youtube.com/user/officerbarbrady what

    Yao Ming is more like Big Pun than like Lil Wayne.

  • Chinadian123

    Yao will be a HOF just not as a player, pretty sure his going in as a contributor… because of what he did for the game of basketball

  • Myung

    For those who are saying Yao is not a HOF-er, I just want to ask you in the least condescending way possible: have you been to the HOF or at least seen the people in the HOF (just google it)? Please look at the men and women in the HOF and then ask again if Yao Ming is worthy of the HOF. I mentioned this yesterday, and I’ll say it again: the basketball HOF is not the NBA HOF. It is the BASKETBALL (I wish I could italicize, underline, and put it in 50 point font) HOF. He will get in. If guys got in based on stats alone, the “Is Yao HOF worthy?” debate is a legit one. But being a great player isn’t the only way one makes it to Springfield. There is a misconception that the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is the NBA Hall of Fame. There are many NBA players in the HOF and it is the ultimate goal of most basketball players (besides winning rings and making lots of money). But you have to keep in mind that men AND women, players AND coaches, referees AND announcers have all made the HOF. Just to give you an example, these were the people inducted in 1961: Bernhard “Bennie” Borgmann, Forrest S. DeBernardi, George H. Hoyt, George E. Keogan, Robert A. “Bob” Kurland, John J. O’Brien, Andy Phillip, Ernest C. Quigley, David H. Walsh, John S. Roosma, Leonard D. Sachs, Arthur A. Schabinger, Christian “Chris” Steinmetz, David “Dave” Tobey, Arthur L. Trester, Edward A. “Ed” Wachter. I’ve been a die hard hoops head for 25+ years, and I’ve never even heard of these people. Again, please spend 5 minutes looking at the list of names of those inducted into the HOF before you begin to even think that Yao Ming will not be in the HOF. I’ve had the privilege of visiting the Mecca for hoop heads (Springfield) 5 years ago, and I was legitimately stunned that so many “no names” were in the HOF. In my ignorance, I thought only the best of the best NBA players were inducted. I was wrong. I think debates are healthy and they’re what make SLAMonline fun to visit… but in this particular case, if you think Yao Ming will not make the HOF, then you don’t know the HOF.

  • Myung

    Drazen Petrovic (RIP) is in the HOF. I’m fairly certain he went in as a player and not as a contributor (forgive me if I’m wrong). I do think Yao deserves consideration as a contributor (for being such a global ambassador to the game), but I’m almost certain he will go in as a player. But again, he will go in, regardless. I’m certain he will make it to the HOF, and I’m fairly certain he’ll be going in the same year as Shaq unless Shaq signs a 10 day contract with the Heat next season or if Yao’s injuries heal up and he makes a comeback. Besides those unlikely scenarios, I think both of these great big men will be enshrined in 2016/2017.

  • Allenp

    Yeah Yao will get in. Impact on basketball is a big factor for the hall.

  • wiz

    wahhhhhh :___C

  • http://bedotwater.bandcamp.com BE.water

    @Max I was singing that song in my head to. Nice. haha

  • Showtime

    U will be miss in the city big fella. damn miss those stevie franchise and Yao days. Yo no yao. No Yo no yoa lol..

  • http://www.slamonline.com melvin ely

    I bet he still gets voted to start in the ASG :p
    on a more serious note, this is indeed a sad day for all. Good luck godspeed big guy.

  • http://360special.blogspot.com/ dev0

    wow, a significant moment in sporting injuries history, probably #1 in the NBA. Could-have-been.

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