Raymond has done a fantastic job translating this long interview that Yao provided to Titan Sports after it was announced that Yao will miss the rest of the season because of a stress fracture in his left ankle. In this translation, we learn:

– Yao and the Rockets trainer initially thought the pain was because of bone spurs before they started checking it out further
– Maybe the stress fracture started back in November in a game against Dallas
– The injury, and the surgery he’ll have, is very similar to what Zydrunas Ilgauskas had done
– He probably could have only played another 2 or 3 games before the pain would have become unbearable
– He probably won’t return to China until late in the recuperation stage because long flights are not good for his ankle
– Much, much more

In my mind, since Yao says he will only be able to work on his upper body during most of the recuperation period, there might be a bright side to all this. Since it’s doubtful he’ll be 100% when the Olympics start, he will probably work hard so he can improve his jump shooting ability so he can provide sure-fire scoring for the Chinese team during the Olympics.

This potential emphasis on outside shooting might help him score more effectively in the long-run since his outside shooting has dropped off since becoming more of a low-post player.

Thanks for the translation, Raymond!

Yao Ming greets in street clothes his teammates as they prepare for their matchup against the Washington Wizards. Inspired to play well without Yao the rest of the season, the Rockets soundly beat the Wizards 94-69. For more photos from the day’s events, click here.

What a day. After all the drama from this afternoon regarding the shocking news about Yao, there was a game to play against the Washington Wizards Tuesday night. It was probably a good thing for Yao’s teammates to focus on a game right away rather than let any depression and/or doubt get a chance to fester over a day or two.

If there is one small consolation about the loss of Yao (and I do mean small), it probably gives the Rockets even more determination to prove their doubters wrong, like the talking heads on ESPN Tuesday afternoon who were saying the Rockets are now “done.”

I think the Rockets are the only team in history who have had a 12-game winning streak where people have said they have “no chance” to win a ring because of the loss of one player, no matter how great that player is. In essence, they have quickly become a “Rodney Dangerfield” – “no respect, no respect at all.”

Last time I checked, the Utah Jazz don’t have a dominating big man in the middle, and the Rockets have just as much talent as them, yet the Jazz get more respect (they probably don’t get enough IMHO). Almost the same situation with Dallas, too. They don’t have a dominant big man in the paint, and the Rockets roster is probably just as dangerous as theirs.

Another small consolation is that with the Rockets banding together in perhaps an “us against the world” mentality, it takes their mind off the distraction of their winning streak. Suddenly their win streak doesn’t seem as important as proving everyone wrong that they can win without Yao. It’s a slight distinction, with the difference being the streak is something you’re afraid to have end, whereas winning without Yao is something you can’t wait to prove to others you can do. Passive versus active.

Well, the Rockets came out Tuesday night as strong and determined as you could ever hope them to be in beating the Wizards 94-69. Dikembe Mutombo started at center, not Luis Scola or Carl Landry.

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Okay, I’ve had more time to put together my thoughts beyond what I wrote at the bottom of the post earlier today (see below) about what the Rockets should do with Yao’s loss from the lineup for the season and the playoffs.

I cleared a shoulder rehab appointment off my calendar today so I could take in all the talk and chat occurring on the Web about today’s bad news. I have never seen more comments on this site and the Houston Chronicle site in my life! I expect the number of page views this site gets will be more than what I received on the highest traffic day I’ve had in years: that day in August when Yao got married.

When the news was announced around noon Central time on Tuesday, I couldn’t help but think of all the Chinese who are 14 hours ahead of Houston’s timezone who were still in bed when the news broke. As I write this, many Chinese will be waking up to hear or read the news. If you think Houston is blowing up right now, you can expect the same thing to happen on the other side of the world.

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Here’s the video of Yao talking about his injury in a press conference from 6:15pm today.

You can tell how depressed Yao is about this news. So sad.

I am absolutely devasted about the news. Stress fracture in his left foot. Out for the season. I can’t remember being so knocked over the head by unexpected news in the NBA — maybe back in 1991 when Magic Johnson had to retire because he contracted the HIV virus. No one saw this coming. I feel like crying.

The stress fracture didn’t occur because of a single event, but occurred over time. Yao had complained of soreness in his left foot during All-Star weekend, so the doctors did lots of tests and finally found out the reason.

I’ll have more analysis later about what happens next for the Rockets. I’m still in too much shock to collect my thoughts. What do you think? Do the Rockets have a chance now? How will they play tonight against the Wizards? Will there be a big let-down? Should they have kept Bonzi for his low-post presence as an insurance policy?

Here’s Ric Bucher’s take on video.

Update: Here are some of my thoughts since my original post above:

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