Houston Rockets star Tracy McGrady was inactive Wednesday night against Indiana with a sore left knee, but forward Shane Battier made his season debut after recovering from inflammation in his left foot.
McGrady said before the season that his knee was not fully healed after offseason surgery. He started Houston's first 15 games and is the Rockets' second-leading scorer, averaging 15.6 points. Houston coach Rick Adelman said McGrady's knee is "a day to day situation." The Rockets' next game is Saturday against San Antonio.
O'Neal hobbled
Forward Jermaine O'Neal missed Wednesday's game against Charlotte with a sore left ankle after leaving Toronto's previous two games because of injuries.
Jamario Moon replaced O'Neal in Toronto's starting lineup.
A strained left knee forced O'Neal out in the fourth quarter of Friday's overtime loss to New Jersey. He returned to the starting lineup in Sunday's loss to Boston but lasted only 14 minutes before injuring his ankle when he landed awkwardly while taking a jump shot, coming down on the foot of a Boston player.
Richardson out again
Charlotte guard Jason Richardson missed his seventh straight game Wednesday when the Bobcats visited the Toronto Raptors.
Richardson, Charlotte's leading scorer with 17.6 points, woke up with pain and swelling his right knee on Nov. 12, a day after matching a season high with 23 points in a loss to Denver. Doctors performed exploratory surgery and found no structural damage.
Richardson returned to practice Tuesday, but Charlotte coach Larry Brown decided to hold him out against the Raptors.
