[Chron] Adelman intensifies preparation for opener

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/bk/bkn/7253137.html

Top priority is setting lineup with, without Yao
By JOSEPH DUARTE
Copyright 2010 Houston Chronicle
Oct. 19, 2010, 12:15AM



The Rockets went back to work Monday still trying to reset their biological clocks after a week-long trip to China.

For a team that has been on the go most of the preseason, they won't have much time to rest.

The Rockets open the regular season exactly one week from today — Oct. 26 at the Los Angeles Lakers. Before then, they will practice twice at Toyota Center before leaving - again - for the final two preseason games against San Antonio on Thursday and Dallas on Friday.

"You're never going to be right there at the start of the season, but we are certainly making progress," coach Rick Adelman said.

Adelman has a list of things the Rockets need to accomplish entering the final week of preparations. First and foremost, Adelman and his staff must decide on what player rotations work best given the limitations on playing time for Yao Ming.

The Rockets will bump Yao's time on the court to 24 minutes this week - the maximum per game prescribed by team doctors to limit the stress on his surgically repaired left foot.

The challenge will be finding the right combination of players - when Yao is or isn't on the court - while not sacrificing anything offensively, Adelman said. The time constraints with Yao will be tested early with the Rockets playing consecutive nights against the Lakers and Golden State Warriors to begin the season.

"We're trying to figure out our rotation, find out what we can do with each group," Adelman said. "I think we're making progress, and that's what we have to do."

How will the Rockets divide up Yao's 24 minutes? When the star center is on the floor, who does he play with? And when Yao isn't on the floor, which players play best together?

"We have to play our game whether (Yao) is on the court or not," Adelman said. "We have to find a way to incorporate him. Our guys have to play the way we're asking them to play. We're making some strides, but we're a long ways from getting there. But we certainly have the ability to make that transition when he's on and off the floor."

Yao said his foot has held up well in the five preseason games he has played.

"It's still under control," he said. "We're making progress every day. So far my foot has responded well."

Miller working into role
Of all the souvenirs the Rockets may have brought back from China, the biggest might be center Brad Miller, who saw his first action of the preseason after being sidelined by an ankle injury. Miller, who was signed to be the primary backup to Yao, had 11 points in 26 minutes during Sunday's victory over the New Jersey Nets.

Miller, along with Jordan Hill, is being counted on to pick up the slack when Yao is not in the lineup or doesn't play in the second part of back-to-back games.

"I probably played (Miller) longer than I wanted to in the one game he played," Adelman said. "His ankle is fine. He needed the work for his conditioning."

During the final week of the preseason, Adelman said he would like to see more consistency on defense.

"We've gotten better in that area," he said. "We'll continue to work on that."

Time to begin pushing
The Rockets did take care of some final housekeeping Monday by waiving four players - guard Antonio Anderson, forward Mike Harris, forward Alexander Johnson and guard Jerel McNeal - to get down to the 15-player roster limit.

And with the roster at full strength, the Rockets will place an emphasis on getting the ball up and down the court.

"We need to push the ball better," forward Shane Battier said. "We have an athletic team, but if we don't push the ball and run we're wasting that talent we have."