According to Yahoo Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski, Yao Ming has informed the NBA league offices in New York and China that he has decided to retire from the NBA.
Yao is only 30 years old however due to injuries has only played 486 of a possible 656 games in his 8-year NBA career. Furthermore he played in 244 of 246 games in his first three years. He finishes averaging 19 points, 9 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game.
In terms of injuries, the final straw for Yao may have come last season where he never recovered from foot surgery. He only played in 5 games last year.
Yao continued to hope that surgery would help him return for the 2011-12 season where he was set to become a free agent. However he often hinted that he may have played his last game.
Not only was Yao effective on the court for the Rockets (when he did play) but he was extremely beneficial for the NBA off the court promoting the game overseas, especially in China.
Source: Yahoo Sports, Twitter