"Yi Jianlian had a brace on his right knee and nothing covering his surgically repaired mouth. But it didn't cause him to shy away from contact in practice.

It's been more than seven weeks since Yi played a game. That should change tonight when the Nets face the Minnesota Timberwolves in what would be classified as a winnable game for the NBA's worst team.

After missing five weeks with a sprained right MCL and another two after an elbow to the mouth required 50 stitches in his upper lip, Yi practiced the past two days and by all accounts showed no signs of worrying about either issue.

"You don't want to go in thinking about the knee or whether you're going to get split open again," Nets guard Devin Harris said. "You can't worry about that. He's tough enough and I think he's ready to go."

"I'm not worried," Yi said. "You play. If something is going to happen, it's going to happen.

The Nets have missed Yi, but realize he's not going to save this 2-26 team. But they're anxious to see what his presence and shooting can do once he gets he's all the way back.

Shooting has been a major weakness for the Nets, who are last in scoring (89.3), shooting (41.5 percent) and three-point shooting (26.8).

The return of Yi and Jarvis Hayes at some point during this seven-game homestand should help those numbers as well as open up driving lanes for Harris and take pressure off of Brook Lopez inside. The Nets, losers of seven straight, hope it helps their record too.

More importantly, the Nets are close to being whole for the first time this season. They're just waiting on Hayes and Chris Douglas-Roberts, who is out with sprained right ankle. Barring a setback, the Nets could have their full roster available by Saturday against the Rockets or at some point next week.

"It provides the base that we're trying to build," coach Kiki Vandeweghe said. "I always go back to keeping in mind the big picture, and you want to make sure that the guys learn how to play together."

The Nets have been working toward that end the past two days. They added new plays offensively, worked on their pick-and-roll game and focused on all areas of defense, mostly transition."