"It could be over for Yao Ming.

His career as a Rocket. His basketball career, period.

It is another sad day for the Rockets' big man, who because of a slew of injuries has never lived up to the superstar status thrust upon him as the No. 1 pick in the 2002 NBA draft and the face of basketball for a nation of 1.3 billion.

Thursday afternoon the team announced that an MRI revealed the 7-6 center had suffered a stress fracture of the medial malleolus in his left ankle. Team doctors believe the injury is related to the fractured tarsal navicular bone, which Yao suffered in the 2009 playoffs, an injury that caused him to miss the 2009-10 season.

The team did not elaborate on the severity of the latest injury, but with his history of foot problems it is reasonable to assume the worst.

On one end of the possible healing time is Grant Hill, who injured the same bone in April 2000, had two surgeries and played just four games in October before having surgery No. 3 and missing the next nine months. Hill then had to have a fourth surgery on the area, to realign the ankle and restructure the heel."