Pau Gasol went through a treadmill workout for the second consecutive day, and if all goes well and he wakes up without any significant pain or soreness in his strained left hamstring, he could practice with his teammates today.
Gasol plans to accompany the Lakers on their two-game trip to play San Antonio on Tuesday and Dallas on Wednesday.
There's a remote chance he could play in those games, but Friday against the Clippers seems more likely.
Gasol sat out for the fourth consecutive game after playing limited minutes in the Lakers' victory Jan. 3 against the Mavericks. He was hurt while warming up for the game and retreated to the locker room after playing a little more than seven minutes.
The Lakers lost two of their first three games without Gasol, who averages 16.8 points, a team-leading 11.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists. "I'm very hopeful I'll be back soon," he said before heading to the Staples Center weight room to begin his treadmill workout before the Lakers faced Milwaukee. "How soon, I can't really tell. That's the messed up part about it." Gasol sat out the season's first 11 games after suffering a strained right hamstring. He said his latest injury isn't as serious and has had no pain or soreness while going about his daily routine. That was not the case with the earlier injury. "When I'm doing normal stuff, I don't feel anything, which is different from the other time," he said. "It seems to be a lot milder than the other one. I'll see if I can push myself a little bit more and continue to push myself and be out there soon." Watching the Lakers play has proved difficult, particularly during losses Friday to Portland and Wednesday to the Clippers. The Lakers have not lost three straight games since Gasol was acquired from Memphis on Feb. 1, 2008. "It's hard, very hard to see the team not playing well and losing and not being out there," he said in his first extended interview since his injury. "I wish we had won each of the games, so I could go through my recovery and not have to go through the stress of watching the team struggle and not been able to help." The Lakers went into Sunday's game with a 19-3 record with Gasol healthy and in uniform this season. They were 8-3 while he sat out to start the season, and then won 10 consecutive when he returned to the active roster Nov. 19 against Chicago. "We're always concerned (when Gasol is out)," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. "We know Pau takes time to come back from injuries, from any injury he has (but) he hasn't had any significant pain at all doing anything before this, one week out." Mid-term grade Jackson gave Ron Artest an incomplete grade when asked about the small forward's play since signing a five-season, $34-million contract with the Lakers last summer. Jackson added the Lakers were satisfied with Artest's play so far.
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