MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Courtney Lee said he’s still two practices away from making his season debut, meaning he likely will have to sit out the back-to-back versus Detroit and Philadelphia on Tuesday and Wednesday. That means, at the earliest, his debut won’t be until Saturday versus Milwaukee.
Lee, who has missed the entire season due to a mysterious neck ailment, returned to practice Saturday, but the Knicks need to make sure he can withstand more contact without suffering a major relapse. Already Lee admits he gets a spasm or two once in a while.
The importance of Lee’s return is not to jack up the team’s fortunes because the Knicks are stacked with shooting guards/small forwards. But if there’s any chance to trade his long-term contract that has $26 million left on it, the savvy “3-and-D’’ veteran has to be showcased for a contender to want his services.
“With the schedule how it is right now, we’re playing so many games and there’s not so many practices,’’ Lee said. “Definitely gotta get in practice to get my timing down, learn all the plays. I pretty much know all of them. But he changed a couple wrinkles in some. Gotta get in there and feel comfortable with the guys, grow some chemistry. Once I get that rhythm, I should be fine from there. Definitely need multiple practices.”
Lee didn’t even play a preseason game due to the bizarre neck injury that created all sorts of symptoms in his chest and back.
“I may get a spasm here and there in my shoulders and sometimes in my neck,’’ Lee said. “But not to the magnitude of when it was at its peak.”
Squeezing playing time for him is tough, especially since Damyean Dotson hadn’t played in the three previous games heading into Sunday night’s game here. The likeliest player to lose his rotation spot whenever Lee is ready is struggling Mario Hezonja, who is currently starting but only as an experiment as Fizdale searches for the right combination.
Former Knicks standout small forward Willie Naulls died on Thanksgiving Day at the age of 84, according to the team. Naulls, the first black team captain in integrated professional sports when his teammates voted him that honor, played for the Knicks from 1956-63 and averaged 20.4 points. He was known for his trademark one-handed perimeter jump shot. Naulls, who played collegiately at UCLA, is the 13th leading scorer in Knicks’ history.
