Five years after his retirement, former Houston Rockets center Yao Ming will reportedly be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall Of Fame. From Yahoo Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski:
Former Houston Rockets center Yao Ming, a transcendent 7-foot-6 Chinese icon, has been elected for enshrinement into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s Class of 2016, league sources told The Vertical.
Yao had been nominated and enters the Hall of Fame under a newly created Direct Elect International Committee. The formal announcement is expected to come at the NCAA Final Four in Houston this weekend.Yao, 35, is largely responsible for the NBA’s massive reach into China and the Far East. Television ratings and merchandise sales exploded there upon Yao’s rise to stardom in the NBA.
Yao was selected with the number 1 overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft, and played 7 seasons with the Rockets(and 5 games of an 8th season).
At 7’6″. Yao was one of the tallest players in NBA history. However, he had a grace to his game that is rare for such a big player. He had a soft tough, and a solid shot(83.3% free throw shooter for his career).
For his NBA career, Yao averaged 19 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks per game.
