The process, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said, can be difficult, though Parker helped the Spurs to the NBA title in his second season.

"People are always different, but it's in one way walking the line between letting a young kid have his head and show you his talents, and at the same time trying to make sure the young kid understands who he is playing with in the system and grow with that," Popovich said. "Sometimes, it's difficult to have them coexist.

"In Aaron's case, he can shoot the ball, he's quick going to the hole, and a confident young guy who can get out there and do things. There are going to be other times (Rockets coach) Rick (Adelman) is going to want him (to know) the ball is going to Yao (Ming), or we're running this play, or the situation on the court. That's the teaching process there, to make sure the young kid understands game situations have a lot to do with winning and losing, and making the right choices based on what's going on on the court. That process takes a while, whether it is Aaron or Tony."

Brooks has heard of the comparisons, and though he noted the differences, said he has felt the challenge of balancing scoring and playmaking.

"In time, I think it will get better," he said. "For us to be our most successful, I have to do what I do and also get the guys the ball. It's knowing when to do it."

Tough stretch

Saturday's game against the Spurs was the Rockets' fifth of the week, the most possible in the NBA in a single week, and 10th in 15 days. Having experience with international tournaments, the Rockets know all about grueling stretches.

"It was 10 games in 12 days," forward Luis Scola said of the Olympics and World Championship schedules. "Usually, you get like two days off. We did 10 in 11 days in Vegas (in Olympic qualifying) because the day off we got was the first day. We got only one day off in between.

"This is different. I had a pretty bad moment in the middle of it. I was tired, really tired. Now, I feel OK."

Scola, who has represented Argentina at the international level, said it takes days to recover from those tournaments, particularly with the long flights back to Buenos Aires.

"You're tired, but it's fun. I like it," Scola said. "Usually, the day after is really weird. You fly back home. The flight is really long... It takes a couple days to recover. That is like another game."

Yao Ming said his toughest schedule was in China.

"We had a schedule back in 2000 before the Sydney Olympics, 20 games in 30 days in 20 different cities," he said. "I was hurting."