Rockets owner : McGrady staying put

HOUSTON (AP) -- Houston Rockets owner Leslie Alexander said Tuesday that oft-injured star Tracy McGrady won't be dealt before Thursday's trade deadline.

McGrady sat out Tuesday's game against New Jersey as he seeks input from doctors on the best course of treatment for his troublesome left knee. He's missed 18 games this season with the injury, the aftermath of offseason surgery. He sat out another game with a sprained ankle.

Alexander said "there will probably be some news" about McGrady in "a couple of days," but it won't be an announcement that the seven-time All-Star has been traded.

"I don't think we're going to part ways with Tracy," Alexander said. "We acquired a great superstar and everybody wants us to trade the great superstar. You don't get superstars that often."

The Rockets acquired McGrady from Orlando in June 2004. He's due to make over $23 million next season, the last year of his contract.

"We're not looking to run away from Tracy," Alexander said. "I always thought he was injured and he had problems. But he's a great player when he's healthy, and a great competitor."

Alexander also said he wants to keep All-Star center Yao Ming for his entire career. Yao's contract is due to expire after the 2010-11 season.

"When you have great players, we want to keep them, guys who work as hard as he does," Alexander said. "He's a model NBA player. We want to keep him for the rest of his career."

Alexander also announced a partnership with Uni-President China Holdings, a Chinese distribution company. The company will team with Alexander's foundation to build educational facilities for schools in China.

That was from the headline on NBA.com, good news for T-MAC fans, but doesn't necessarily mean good news for Rockets fan. Personally, it was a relief to me. I think McGrady still have the superstar juice left, he just have to deal with his left knee and get his ass back in shape. In my opinion, the Rockets should maintain this roster until next season, that way the chemistry can build up between players and they'll finally play smooth basketball on both sides of the court once that happens.