"Am I doing better or worse since you left me? With or without you, what's the difference?" These are fair questions to ask for those who have lost their loved ones. Confucius says you can tell how important the one is to you only when you are without the one.

Without Yao, the Houston Rockets seem to be doing pretty well, actually, better in records. With Yao in the lineup, the Rockets are 16:11; without him, it is 14:6. The winning percentage is 59% to 70%.

These figures can naturally lead to the conclusion that Yao is not important to the team, but it's easy to find that's not exactly the case after breaking down these games.

Houston Rockets star Yao Ming breaks a bone in his right leg during a game against the Los Angeles Clippers on Dec. 23, 2006. The team is 14-6 since that injury.[Sohu.com]

Offense

Since Yao Ming broke a bone in his right leg on December 23 last year, the Rockets' five starters are Rafer Alston, Tracy McGrady, Shane Battier, Juwan Howard, and Dikembe Mutombo. Until February 3, the five were on the court 21 times altogether for 298 minutes, scored 609, and allowed 529, winning by a margin of 80 points.

They were up 14 times, and outscored seven times. Their efficiency of 66.6% is quite impressive, but not quite as much as when Yao is on the court.

At the beginning of the season, the Rockets' starters were Rafer Alston, Tracy McGrady, Shane Battier, Chuck Hayes, and Yao Ming. They were on the court 14 times for 193 minutes, scored 412, and allowed 303, winning by a margin of 109 points. They were ahead 12 times, beaten by their opponents two times, and their efficiency was 85.7%. The rockets are at best when Both Yao and T-mac are on the court. 

Defense

The Rockets' starting lineup without Yao allowed a shooting percentage of 45.7% while grabbing 9% more rebounds than their opponents. But the Rockets' lineup including Yao gave their rival a much harder time to find their range, allowing only 39.8% shooting percentage. Meanwhile, they also grabbed 8% more rebounds.

Leave no doubt about how much is still left in Mutumbo's tank. The statistics show that he is still one the most efficient rebounders in the league, but Yao is still a better overall defensive player.

T-Mac Factor

In the two Rockets teams, with and without Yao, the biggest difference may not be Yao, but Tracy McGrady. He has definitely been revived from his slump at the beginning of the season, and found his groove again after Yao was out. He topped 30 points for the 11th time on a win in a 105:77 rout over the Timberwolves on February 5.

With veterans Juwan Howard and Dikembe Mutombo taking care of their jobs and providing some valuable experience and morale, the rest of the team have also stepped up while Yao is out. There is more chemistry in the Rockets now that the players have had three months to mesh.

The Rockets are a better team, and better teams win more games. With Yao expecting to come back in March, this team has a chance to elevate from good to great.

For the record, Confucius never said you can tell how important the one is to you only when you are without the one. You can tell how much he can make you better when you are with him, rather than how much worse you feel when you are without him.