--The Rockets are close to rounding out their training camp roster. They signed C Pops Mensah-Bonsu to a non-guaranteed, one-year contract, reached agreements with Gs Will Conroy and Garrett Temple to non-guaranteed deals, and have begun working out big men to provide depth for the preseason and possibly the start of the season. Stromile Swift, Lorenzen Wright and Jelani McCoy have been working out with the Rockets, who could bring one to camp. With Yao Ming out, the Rockets could begin the season with David Andersen, Joey Dorsey and Mensah-Bonsu playing center, but they might want a bigger center, especially early in the season, when they play the Trail Blazers twice in the first week. --F Luis Scola averaged a tournament-best 23.3 points and was named the MVP of the FIBA Americas, leading short-handed Argentina to five consecutive wins to qualify for next summer's World Championships.
The Rockets will not ask Scola, expected to arrive in Houston a week before training camp, to score as he did in Puerto Rico, but his role in the NBA has become more like his role with Argentina, with both teams playing without key players.
The Rockets will be without Yao Ming. The Rockets do not know when Tracy McGrady will be ready. Argentina was without veterans Manu Ginobili, Fabricio Oberto, Walter Herrmann, Andres Nocionio and Carlos Delfino.
"It was huge," Scola said on the Rockets' Web site. "We struggled a little bit at the beginning and it looked a little bit dark when we lost a couple games, but I was so happy when we fought back and started winning games and made it a really great tournament overall. I have been blessed to win two Olympic medals, so of course those rank very high. But this one, in my heart, it's close to that level because of the way the team was playing before the tournament and it was a very difficult situation for us, yet we rose above."
QUOTE TO NOTE: "I think there's going to be more pressure on me to make plays, not just score. We added some great pieces, so it'll be more on me to initiate the offense and get us some good looks." -- G Aaron Brooks.
