Renaldo Major figures it will take him at least a couple of weeks to get back to 100 percent, but his familiar smile was in midseason form as the Dakota Wizards began their first day of practices on Monday.

The thin pad he was wearing on his chest and under his jersey was the only reminder that Major is returning to the game after missing a year due to heart surgery.

"I'm ready to go,"Major said. "I've been anxious ever since the doctor gave me the clearance to play in June.

"… I'm still working the kinks out, getting back in the groove of things," he added. "Getting back to in game shape, basketball shape. You can be in good shape, but it's nothing like basketball shape."

If the 6-foot-7 forward isn't quite all the way back to the form that helped him win the D-League's defensive player of the year award while leading the Wizards to a championship, he's not that far off.

"I think by the first game, he's going to be the old Renaldo,"Wizards coach Duane Ticknor said. "We were concerned on how he would bounce back from practice one to practice two. There's no side effects. He was going hard this morning.

"… He's not there, game-condition yet," Ticknor added. "But I thought he'd be tentative a little bit, but he's taking it to the basket like he always has.

"When you're a competitor like he is, when the lights come on, he's going to get after it."

Major said the chest pad he's wearing - like the one worn by Washington's Etan Thomas after his heart surgery - has bolstered his confidence.

Major said that he promised his father - who passed away in May - that he would wear the pad for protection.

"It helps so much, because I can bump, and I can be physical as I can and be aggressive with the guys and not have to worry about getting poked in the chest or anything,"Major said. "It's loose, and it's very comfortable. It's the best thing for me. I really like it. I'm glad that the Wizards gave it to me."

After having the surgery last October to repair a valve problem, Major had hoped to return to last season, but he wasn't ready. He spent the offseason ensuring he would be prepared this year.

"I went down to Atlanta this summer and I worked out there until September,"Major said. "I was feeling good. I was ready. But Icouldn't go to Summer League with Milwaukee. I really wasn't ready for that level of play yet, so Ididn't want to go up there and just make a bad little statement.

"… I came down here a week early before everybody else so Icould get in a little better shape,"he said.

In addition to Major, Maurice Baker and Quemont Greer played on the 2007 championship team. Wil Frisby, David Bell and Mike Peeples played with Dakota last season.

"We're looking good,"Major said. "We're getting there. It's a day-by-day process. It's not going to be an overnight thing where we get back to that form. We've got to put in the work, and that's what we're doing.

"We've got a nice group of rookies in here that's working us hard, and making us not be at a comfortable level. We've got to work. We don't want them taking our spots."

One difference between this squad and the last time Major played for the Wizards is that Ticknor is at the helm instead of Dave Joerger.

Ticknor gave Major his big professional break with the Gary Steelheads of the CBA, and Major said he is very comfortable to be playing for Ticknor again.

"He's a great guy," Major said. "He lets you play your game. If you play the right way, you'll love him as a coach. And more than a coach, Ilove him as a person. When my dad died, he was there for me.

"He's the reason I'm here. He gave me a chance to make the team my rookie year in Gary. I owe a lot of my success to him. He's just a great coach and a great person. Icouldn't be any more happy than to play for him."

And Major is eager to show fans he can still be the same player he was before his surgery.

"I'm just anxious and I can't wait," Major said. "To all the Wizards fans, I hope they'll be here to pack the stands (for opening night) next Saturday."