Maurice

Taylor

After coach Jeff Van Gundy benched Taylor for the second half last Wednesday, he talked with Taylor about clearing his mind and just playing the game. In his past two outings, Taylor is 7-of-15 (46.7 percent) from the field. We still can’t recommend any of Houston’s power forwards.

Taylor had been playing with pain in the foot for about 10 days and said he would have had to sit out several games if the Rockets were not chasing a spot in the playoffs. He’s day-to-day.

Odd. He’s still eligible to come off the IL whenver he’s ready to play, and said Wednesday he expected to return to practice and the rotation. When he does play, he should go back to sharing time with Juwan Howard.

''I’m not going to say I’m not disappointed,’' Taylor said. ''I’d rather be playing. But hey, it’ll take more than that to break me. I played well today in practice. It’s more of a team thing than me. They’ve been playing well, so that’s how it goes.’' Trainers have cleared Taylor to play. There are rumors in Houston that he could be part of trade talks, since coach Jeff Van Gundy has been happy with the play of Juwan Howard.

Taylor isn’t going to need surgery. “We did a lot of exercising with it today, a lot of strengthening,” he said. “It’s getting looser and looser each day.”

Other than showing no fractures, tests on Saturday were inconclusive. The results of an MRI aren’t yet known and additional tests are scheduled for this morning. If damage is found in cartilage or muscles, Taylor could be out for weeks. If surgery is required, he’d miss most of the season. Eddie Griffin would benefit most from a lengthy absence.

Taylor believes he is ahead of schedule in recovering from a dislocated shoulder.

“I think I can play because I don’t think me sitting out the next day or not practicing today (Friday) will help it get better,” Taylor said.

He’s day-to-day, but is likely to play.

Taylor, who has missed time with a rib injury, could have a little value with Kelvin Cato on the I.L.