Rockets center Yao Ming won't return to the lineup until Monday at the earliest as he recovers from a sprained left ankle.

He suffered the injury last Wednesday and Houston announced that he would miss at least a week of action.

Yao didn't travel with the team to Oklahoma City for Wednesday's game against the Thunder and won't be in Toronto on Friday night either.

"It's pretty simple," Yao said. "We just wait for the feeling to get normal, no soreness and (when) I can push off with no soreness or pain. At that time, I will come back to the court. It's all about the ankle. It's improving."