There certainly hasn't been a shortage of stars on the shelf this season, but which was the Toughest Injury of them all?

Maurice Brooks:
Although the Rockets have still had some success without him, it was tough watching Yao Ming go down in the middle of his career season. He was a candidate for MVP with numbers of 25.9 points and 9.4 rebounds a game before fracturing his tibia. The injury happened on Dec. 23 and Yao is expected to be out until March. Ouch.

Jeff Dengate:
Can you call what’s happened in Oklahoma City a single injury? The Hornets have spent a good chunk of the season playing without any of their top stars – Chris Paul, Peja Stojakovic, Bobby Jackson, David West. As a result, last year’s Cinderella team has fallen to the basement in the Southwest Division this season.

John Hareas:
A little older, a littler slower Shaquille O'Neal, you say? He’s still The Diesel and evidenced by the Heat’s underwhelming, championship defending 17-20 record without him, don’t ever repeat those words ever again.

Dave McMenamin:
After winning Rookie of the Year and seeing his team acquire Peja Stojakovic, Tyson Chandler and Bobby Jackson in the offseason, Chris Paul seemed primed to lead his team to the Western Conference Playoffs this season. That’s until he got injured of course. The injury bug that hit teammates David West and Stojakovic ending up plaguing Paul as well as he went down on Dec. 26 with an ankle ailment. The Hornets have gone into a tailspin without their young court general and it looks like New Orleans/Oklahoma City fans will have to wait till next year for that postseason run.

Rob Peterson:
It seems that the only break Yao Ming can ever get is a bad one. Last year, Yao Ming was on a tear and broke his foot. This year, he was another tear and through a freak accident, breaks his knee. Every time Yao seems to make strides, every time he starts to show he's the NBA's best center, every time it looks as if he and T-Mac will start to get their dream tandem going, one of them goes down with an injury. That's tough.

Chris Rosenbluth:
The Hornets were already a team depleted by injuries when Chris Paul went down with a badly sprained ankle. As long as he was in the lineup, though, you still felt like they could keep it together long enough to get healthy and make a playoff push. It becomes increasingly difficult to imagine such a scenario with him on the shelf, as he’ll be for at least a few more weeks. His bum ankle may be the final straw on a season that began with pretty high hopes.

John Schuhmann:
I just want to know if The Diesel, a.k.a. Shaquille O'Neal, will still "veteran-ly pace" himself over half a season with the Heat in the hole that they are. If not, look out Eastern Conference.