As former Houston Rockets center Yao Ming will be joining the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame according to multiple media outlets. The announcement will come this weekend in Houston during the NCAA Final Four when the 2016 class is unveiled.
The 7-foot-6 Yao played nine seasons in the NBA with the Rockets after starting his career with the Shanghai Sharks in the Chinese Basketball Association. He was the No.1 overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft, the first ever for Asia. But foot and ankle injuries forced Yao to cut short his career in 2011. The center averaged 19 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game and was named to the NBA All-Star team eight times. Yao is considered responsible for basketball's growth and popularity in his native China and his pending induction in his first year of eligibility shows what an impact he had.