D'Antoni anxiously awaits vet guard Davis
Injured Baron Davis of the New York Knicks looks on against the New Jersey Nets. (Dec. 21, 2011) Credit: Jim McIsaac
Breaking news on the Baron Davis timetable: Now Mike D'Antoni figures he asks the rehabbing point guard every 15 minutes about when he might be back, as opposed to asking every half-hour a couple weeks ago.
As to when Davis will be able to actually return, it still looks like the end of January. "Give a week, take a week," said the coach, whose team desperately needs a heady veteran's direction.
The Knicks knew when they signed Davis in December that he would require weeks of work to overcome the bulging discs in his back. "We'll just see how it goes, how he feels," D'Antoni said, adding that the point guard will start with three-on-three, then four-on-four drills and then practice. It won't be a whole lot of practice time, either.
"Once," D'Antoni said, only half-kidding. "It's going to be a process where he'll get 'game legs' and he'll play in a game. I don't know what that means, when he's cleared and feels good, then he'll start playing."
Brief trip to D-League
The Knicks generally prefer to have extra players travel with the team, even when they rarely play. But they did send center Jerome Jordan and guard Jeremy Lin to Erie of the D-League. D'Antoni said that was only temporary, and only because the condensed schedule leaves little time for practice. They probably will be back in a week.
Knicks fix
Bill Walker sat out Wednesday night's game with a sore right knee . . . Alvin Gentry, coach of the struggling Suns, saw a cluster of media people entering his crowded locker room before the game and said, "I'm glad I'm not 4-9 in this town."
