Foot injury leaves Yao's future in doubt

Casting a degree of doubt on Yao Ming’s immediate and long-term NBA future, Rockets team physician Tom Clanton on Monday described the extent of the center’s foot injury. And with the league’s free-agent shopping season set to begin at 11 p.m. today, the Rockets will quickly discover how far the shock waves reach.

The fracture in Yao’s left foot has worsened and could be severe enough to threaten his entire next season or even his career, depending on the success of potential treatments he could choose, Clanton said.

Less than two weeks ago, Rockets general manager Daryl Morey said the team is committed to building around Yao.

“Yao,” Morey said before the latest test results, “is the cornerstone of our franchise now and in the future.”

Now Morey might have to start rebuilding without him.

Yao, who was hurt during this year’s NBA Western Conference semifinals against the Los Angeles Lakers, is scheduled to visit specialists around the country to choose a course of treatment. He could try a more conservative approach by immobilizing the foot in hopes the hairline fracture in his left tarsal navicular bone will heal on its own, as doctors predicted it would when Yao’s season ended May 8. Because Yao has no pain or other symptoms, Clanton said there is reason to be optimistic that approach could work.

But Clanton also revealed Monday that a CT scan showed Yao’s injury not only failed to heal as expected but has gotten worse, potentially requiring a surgical remedy.

“At this point, the injury has the potential for him missing this next season and could be career-threatening,” Clanton said. “One of the things we are trying to get is a consensus opinion on that, to make certain there is no option we are overlooking that would provide an earlier return or would be an option for treatment that he would prefer rather than doing additional surgery.”

Yao, Rockets owner Leslie Alexander and Yao’s agent, John Huizinga, were unavailable for comment. Morey said he would not discuss Yao’s injury or its ramifications until Yao chooses a treatment option and doctors offer a prognosis.

“We are not going to comment,” Morey said, “until we have all the facts.”