MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
Tracy McGrady carried the Rockets when Yao Ming went out Dec. 22, deftly balancing playmaking and scoring, starting with a run of 30-point games that demonstrated that the Rockets could hold it together with Yao out.

MOST DISAPPOINTING PLAYER
Bonzi Wells was a low-risk late addition, but never bought in. He missed most of the preseason with a groin injury, root canal procedure and a personal leave. He was benched to get in shape before he was plugged into the rotation Dec. 12, only to go out with a sore back in January and a back injury in February and a sore foot briefly in March. He was healthy through most of March, but when he was brought back for one last try to make it work, he played in one game before asking out of the next and not showing up at all for the one after that, ending his season the way it started.

FREE AGENT FOCUS
Chuck Hayes and Dikembe Mutombo are the only free agents in the Rockets' short rotation. The Rockets intend to bring Hayes back but face a decision on whether Mutombo still works as a backup to Yao Ming. If not, Jake Tsakalidis could be an option. Bonzi Wells is expected to opt out of his two-year deal to become a free agent and go anywhere else.

PLAYER NOTES

--Bonzi Wells, after leaving the team late in the season, said he would love to play for the Rockets again, particularly with Rick Adelman in as coach, but has not said that he would revise his plan to opt out of his contract.

--Yao Ming might not have surgery to remove a toenail as planned. Able to work out as usual despite the problem, he is visiting doctors to consider a procedure in which the nail would not grow back and subject him to the problems he has.

--Shane Battier, coming off the best three-point shooting season of his career, said he was confident that he would be able to adjust to the coaching change. "I feel like I have the kind of game that can work with any coach. You always want to play for a coach that has experience and has won," Rockets forward Shane Battier said. "I think coach Adelman has shown that over the years in different situations. That's the exciting part of this announcement."

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