The Rockets were eager to get at least one more go at it with their starting center, who missed the entirety of the 2009-10 season recovering from surgery to repair a broken bone in his left foot. They had a rough season, finishing barely above .500 and missing the playoffs for the first time in four years.
With Yao, they were a serious threat in the Western Conference and were a team that could make some noise come playoff time. Without him, they flopped.
So you can imagine the relief for Rockets GM Daryl Morey when on June 29, two days before the start of NBA free agency, Yao announced that he was declining to terminate the final year of his contract and would remain in Houston through at least the summer of 2011.
When healthy, Yao is an all-world presence at center on both ends of the floor. He's a 22 and 10 stat line waiting to happen every night, and a tremendous post defender. If you're going to fight for a chance to dethrone the Lakers and seize control of the competitive West, the star big man is the one guy you can't leave home without.
Keeping Yao is a huge step forward for Morey's Rockets. But it's only the first step.
What comes next is the challenging part: Using Yao's presence to lure a marquee sidekick into Houston.
The draw of playing alongside Yao is more than just double-doubles. His presence in Houston gives the Rockets an allure that you don't see anywhere else in the NBA.
In China, Yao is practically a deity. To a nation of over a billion people, he's LeBron James, Alex Rodriguez and Tiger Woods all rolled into one.
Yao starts every All-Star Game for the Western Conference. He's usually the leading vote-getter in a runaway.
More viewers across the globe tune in for a regular-season Rockets game than for the Super Bowl.
You could make a case that the most popular sports team in the world isn't the Yankees, the Cowboys or Man U — it's the Houston Rockets.
Who wouldn't want to play for a team like that?
The Rockets are keeping Yao, and that being the case, they've got a chance to parlay the presence of the big man into a big summer.
The big name you'll hear about is Chris Bosh, who's leaving $30 million on the table if he signs elsewhere than his Raptors. A sign-and-trade is the win-win solution for both Bosh and Toronto, and the Rockets have plenty of assets to offer up.
Bosh will have control over the process, and anyone in the NBA would love to have him. If he opts to return to his home state of Texas, he could wind up being one half of a deadly post duo with Yao.
With Yao still in the fold, and set to make just under $17.7 million next season, the Rockets have high hopes for 2010-11. They don't want to be content with a .500 season. They don't even want a playoff berth and a first-round exit. They've got one of the best big men in the game on their side, and not only is he healthy, he's still in his prime at 29.
Keeping Yao was the first step. From there, they just need to keep building.
