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"The new brace Keith found is doing its thing really well," Dawson said. "Yao likes it. Everything is looking good. He's made a lot of progress."

Including the game in which Yao was hurt in the first quarter, the Rockets went 20-12 without him. But they have been slipping markedly. They have lost five of the past eight games, including consecutive home losses in which they blew a 13-point fourth quarter lead to lose to the last-place Celtics and then were routed by the Raptors and Spurs. Saturday's 97-74 loss to San Antonio was by the largest margin of any loss this season.

"It depends on the game," Van Gundy said. "Certainly at home I have not been pleased with how we played. If you take the games from Miami (Feb. 21), there have been some good, some not so good. At Atlanta, not as good. At Orlando, not bad. Boston, you know. And Toronto, obviously we would like to do it over again. (Friday) night (in Denver) was good. (Saturday, the Spurs) were the superior team from start to finish.

"We have more than enough to correct on our end. We have to be able to throw the ball into the post some. We have to make layups around the basket. We have to block out on the free throw line. We have to be able to guard our man, versus getting beat off the first dribble. Things of that nature."

Yao cannot solve each of those needs. But he is by far the Rockets' best scoring threat in the low post, most reliable shooter and productive rebounder.

Speaking of the Spurs' Tim Duncan and his impact on Saturday's game, Van Gundy might as well had been talking about his own then-missing center.

"It shows you the value of having a guy you can throw it inside to," Van Gundy said. "It collapses the defense. It gets you to the free throw line. (Duncan) by himself basically had us in foul trouble in the first half."

Yao will not be expected to do all that immediately, but the Rockets had that before Yao was hurt. Sunday's decisions allowed them to start getting it back.

"The doctors take everything into consideration, how he looks, how he feels, and what he's doing," Jones said. "They also take into consideration the only way to get in shape to play basketball is to play basketball. But we want the safest way possible. We're pulling out all stops to make sure he's progressing, and do the right thing by him and by the team. We don't want to throw him out there too soon. But he has progressed and done really well. The more information we have, the better decision everybody can make."

Everybody made it on Sunday. By tonight, the process will move from the doctors' offices and practice courts to the arena.

"It's going to take awhile get back to par," Dawson said. "His presence will help. This is a process. It's going to start tomorrow."

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