Two weeks and a day after undergoing a laparoscopic appendectomy, center Andris Biedrins is set to return for the Warriors tonight in Miami.

“We played 2-on-2, 3-on-3 (Thursday), and I was feeling pretty good, so we’ll try it today and see how it goes,” Biedrins said at today’s shootaround. “I feel pretty good and we’ll see.”

Since it only takes a missed day or two to fall out of the shape you need to be in for Nellieball, Biedrins had been worried about his conditioning. While those fears aren’t gone, he doesn’t expect to be gasping for air like Faith No More’s fish.

“Of course it’s not 100 percent, but it’s pretty close,” Biedrins said. “We’ll see in the first minutes how I’ll do. But it’s much better. I was working out the last couple of days on conditioning and making sure that I won’t get tired so fast.”

As usual, Nelson wouldn’t discuss his starting lineup, but it would make sense on several fronts to have Biedrins take the opening tap. From a simple basketball perspective, Biedrins — even at 85 percent, say — remains a key cog in a Warriors defense that did not provide much help in Charlotte (or even Atlanta, for that matter). And health-wise, it’s probably better to have Biedrins warmed up and ready to go rather than coming in cold off the bench.

– Geoff

I’m thinking I should stop waiting for this team to fall off the map.
I just watched the Rockets blow out Dallas. They look good. They’re sharing the ball. They are knocking down shots. They’ve got some young hustlers who don’t mind doing dirty work.
Not having Yao practically kills their chance of reaching the Finals, but apparently his absence won’t stop them in the regular season. They are playing faster without Yao, which takes advantage of their athleticism and works well in the regular season. Not too sure if it will work in the regular season, when Rafer Alston’s decision making will be critical and players like Carl Landry and Luis Scola will have their weaknesses picked at.
How does Houston’s never-ending streak effect the Warriors? Hard to tell. I guess we’ll see. But I think the Warriors need to get the six seed to have the best chance of advancing (they have no chance in the first round against the Lakers and the Spurs, who are starting to separate themselves). Dallas (No. 7) and Phoenix (No. 6) are falling fast, so maybe the Warriors can overtake one of those teams. Because it doesn’t look as if they’ll catch Houston.

I commented to Tim Kawakami in the Oracle Arena media room Sunday afternoon that my one concern with writing about the improvements in Chris Webber’s game was the fact that things might turn 180 degrees at any moment.

Oops.

After a first half Sunday night in which he clearly struggled, Webber did not come out after intermission because of soreness in his left knee, the same one that gave way in 2003, eventually requiring microfracture surgery.

The team didn’t have much in the way of details — “sore left knee” was as much as we got in the locker room — but Webber said he wants to get an MRI as soon as possible. It’s not clear if the team can get that done before its scheduled departure at 10 a.m. Monday, or if Webber might stay behind to see the doctors and catch up with the team later.

With Andris Biedrins already out, if Webber is unavailable in Atlanta, Don Nelson will have few options in the middle: go small with Al Harrington or Austin Croshere, or go big with oft-inactive Patrick O’Bryant or Kosta Perovic. I’d expect the former rather than the latter, which should insure that Brandan Wright will continue to start for the foreseeable future at power forward.

I’ve been skeptical of the notion that the Warriors, with 15 guaranteed contracts, would sign another player, since many of the guys available are not clearcut improvements over what Golden State already has. But if Webber’s pain is a significant injury, I think they have to give further serious consideration to that idea.

As for Sunday’s game, the thing that stood out the most for me was the fact that seven players scored in the fourth quarter. I can’t remember the last time Golden State had that kind of diversity down the stretch of a game where the outcome was still in doubt.

– Geoff