KNICK NOTES

Kurt Thomas still hopes to sign a contract extension with the Knicks but it likely won’t be this week, as had been reported by The Post Monday. Thomas said a “slight hangup” prevented it from occurring yesterday.

Agent Jerry Hicks was supposed to fly from Dallas to New York to finalize the four-year, $30 million extension, but he did not make the trip. Hicks said he hopes to have it completed next week, while Thomas said, “hopefully in two days.”

“We’re working through the paperwork,” Hicks said. “It’s not an easy transaction, [but] it’s a small matter.”

Thomas’ extension should not be viewed as a long-term commitment from Isiah Thomas. It allows the Knicks to more easily trade him – possibly for Rasheed Wallace or Erick Dampier – in the summer. Thomas gets the benefit of long-term security.

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Allan Houston returns to the Garden for first time since Jan. 27 vs. San Antonio after which he shut it down because of two painful knees and went on a month-long rehab assignment.

“It seems like it’s been longer than a month,” said Houston, who returned Sunday in Denver with a low-impact 13 points. “To see how the Garden was and how it’s been lately, it’s going to be fun to be part of that again. Even when we were playing well, I was kind of out of it. I’m excited to be back.”