Chinese basketball star Yao Ming could miss the upcoming NBA season and possibly never play professional ball again, according to a Houston Rockets team physician. The foot injury Yao sustained in a Western Conference semifinals game against the Los Angeles Lakers has worsened over the last two months and could force the perennial NBA All-Star to consider more invasive surgery, as reported in the Houston Chronicle.
据休斯顿火箭队的队医说，中国篮球明星姚明可能会缺席即 将开始的NBA赛季，并且他的职业篮球生涯可能也要就此结束。 《休斯顿纪事报》(Houston Chronicle)报导,姚明在西部半决赛对 阵洛杉矶湖人队时所受的脚伤在过去2个月中出现恶化，这位多届 NBA全明星成员可能被迫再次接受手术治疗。
News of the severity of the hairline fracture Yao originally suffered on May 8 spread quickly through Chinese Internet news portals and discussion boards on Tuesday, prompting more sympathy than criticism for the oft-injured star.
姚明最初是在5月8日的比赛中左脚出现小裂纹骨裂的。他伤 势加重的消息周二迅速在中国门户网站和论坛中传播开来，人们 更多的是同情这位多次受伤的明星，而不是指责。
“The Rockets are dead, and Chinese fans have lost all hope，” read one message on Sina.com.
新浪网(Sina.com)的一条评论称火箭队完蛋了，中国球迷的 希望彻底破灭了。”
“Yao，you’re not the only one who has been hurt deeply by this news,” read another. “You know how many people’s hopes rest on your shoulders.”
另一人写道姚明，你并不是因这条消息而深受打击的第一 人。你知道有多少人的希望都压在了你的肩上吗？ ”
Chinese fans have grown accustomed to seeing Yao out with an injury. While he has noticeably toughened up over his seven seasons in the NBA, he has often been hurt. In February 2008 he suffered a stress fracture in his left foot that kept him out of the NBA playoffs，but he returned to play for his country in the Beijing Olympics. He carried China’s flag into the Olympic stadium and led the Chinese men to the quarterfinals, where they lost to Lithuania. This past NBA season was the first since 2004-05 that he didn’t miss a significant number of games due to injury.
中国球迷看到姚明受伤已经习惯了。虽然他在NBA的7个赛 季期间已经明显强壮了不少，但还是会经常受伤。2008年2月，因 为左脚应力性骨折而无法参加季后赛，但他在北京奥运会仍代表 国家队重新复出比赛。他高举着中国国旗进入奥运会场馆并带领 中国队打进了 1/4决赛,可惜输给了立陶宛队。上次的NBA赛季是 2004?2005赛季以来首次他没有因为伤病缺席的赛季。
After seeing their hero return from injury so many times before, few in China seem ready to declare him finished. Eric Zhang, Yao’s agent, told the China Daily that it was premature to call an end to the center’s career, and many fans agree. “I think whether he can make a comeback depends on his own attitude，，’ says Ma, during a break from a pickup game in Beijing. “There are plenty of basketball players who managed to do that after major injuries. I don，t see why Yao Ming should be an exception?”
以前看过这么多次姚明受伤又重返赛场，中国球迷没有这么 快就预期他们的英雄要停止比赛。姚明的经纪人章明基告诉《中国日报说这就是姚明职业生涯的终点还为时尚早。”很多球迷也是这么认为的。马先生在北京比赛中场休息时说广我想他是否能再重返赛场取决于他自己的态 度，很多篮球运动员不是都能在大伤病之后成功复出吗？没有理由说姚明就是个例外。”
Yao, however, is not the only NBA star who has found a loyal following among the Chinese public. Kobe Bryant’s official NBA jersey regularly outsells Yao’s on the mainland, and the Los Angeles Lakers guard received a hero’s welcome at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. The outpouring of affection even surprised Kobe, who has a more complicated relationship with NBA fans in the US He later joked that he wished he could move to China.
不过，姚明并不是唯一在中国拥有忠实追随者的NBA球星。在中国大陆，科比?布莱恩特 (Kobe Bryant)的NBA球衣销量甚至超过了姚明，洛杉矶湖人队在2008年的北京奥运会上就获得 了英雄般的欢迎。这种狂热甚至令科比都感到惊讶，他与美国NBA球迷的关系更为复杂。他后来开 玩笑说，他希望能搬到中国来。
Kobe will receive an award today from the Asia Society in Los Angeles for his role as a ^Cultural Ambas-sador”，in a ceremony that will be attended by Liu Peng, China’s Secretary of Sport and a member of China’s Communist Party Central Committee.
今天，科比将接受洛杉矶亚洲协会授予他的“文化大使”的称号。中国国家体育总局局长、中央 委员会委员刘鹏将出席这一仪式。
At one outlet of the NBA Store in Beijing on Tuesday afternoon, business was slow but optimism about Yao was running high. One sales assistant promised that no injury could keep Yao Ming down for long. “He，11 be back for sure，’，the young man said confidently.
周二下午,在北京一家NBA商店出口处,业务情况一般，但人们对姚明的状况非常乐观。一个 销售助理表示，没有什么伤能将姚明击倒。这个年轻人自信地说他肯定还会回来的。”
In perhaps a sign of the NBA，s continuing relevance in a post-Yao world, a life-size picture comparing the heights of Yao, Kobe, and diminutive New Orleans Hornets guard Chris Paul greets customers on their way into the store. Once inside, the rack of Yao jerseys does not stand out from those of the other NBA stars that surround it.
在商店的门口，摆着姚明、科比和新奥尔良黄蜂队矮个子后卫保罗(Chris Paul)真人大小的照 片仿佛在欢迎顾客的到来。一旦进人商店，货架上姚明的球衣与周围其他NBA球星的球衣并没有 明显区别。这些可能预示着即使在后姚明时代，NBA在中国仍会受到追捧。
In fact, the hottest-selling jersey in the store of late has been that of a rival to Yao，s title as the game’s best big man: Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard.
事实上，商店中最近销售最火爆的球衣是与姚明争夺NBA最佳中锋的竞争者之一:奥兰多魔 术队的核心人物德怀特?霍华德(Dwight Howard)。
Of course, a true reckoning of the most popular player in terms of all jersey sales would be tough to reach because of China’s vast market for knockoffs.
当然，由于中国巨大的仿制名牌市场，很难通过球衣的销量判断哪位球星最受欢迎。