Thunder point guard Earl Watson's fractured thumb has healed, and he was recently cleared to resume full-contact practice.
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"Earl's been looking good,” said Thunder coach P.J. Carlesimo. "He's been playing in pick-up games and doing dribbling and shooting drills with the players. He's good to go.”
Watson, the team's starting point guard most of last season and the only challenger to rookie Russell Westbrook for minutes at the position this season, injured his thumb in late June and underwent surgery in July. He was originally expected to miss the majority of training camp.
•Swift injured: Center Robert Swift recently suffered a broken bone in his right hand and has been unable to fully participate in the team's voluntary workouts. He is likely to be limited in training camp and the preseason.
Swift is entering this season recovering from March surgery to repair a torn meniscus.
"Robert has been unable to play less because of his leg and more because of his hand,” Carlesimo said. "That's prevented him from playing in any of the live stuff. He does individual stuff with (assistant coach) Mark Bryant. But he's doing most of it with his left hand. We're just trying to go as slow as we can, and hopefully by next week he'll be ready to go.
"We're hopeful, but we're prepared that maybe he can't go the whole practice or maybe he can't go two practices in a row. It's probably going to be to his tolerance.”
•Wilcox battling virus: Chris Wilcox, who started 55 games last season before missing the final 14 games with a sprained right pinkie finger, has been battling what could be a possible virus in recent days while in Houston.
When Wilcox spoke with Carlesimo on Wednesday morning, he said he hasn't been feeling good the last few weeks.
"We're anxious to see him,” Carlesimo said. "First, we need to evaluate the finger, which I don't think will be a concern, and then look at his conditioning. The quicker we get him in condition and 100 percent physically, no question that's going to be critical.”
•All aboard: Carlesimo said most of the players are now in town with the exception of Wilcox, who is expected to arrive either today or Friday from Houston, and Joe Smith, who is scheduled to return Saturday.
•Thunder and Feed the Children: The Thunder has partnered with Feed The Children to collect non-perishable food items at Friday's Hurricane Ike benefit concert at the Oklahoma City Zoo Amphitheater.
The first 500 concert-goers who bring two or more non-perishable food items and present a valid concert ticket to the show will receive a voucher for two tickets to the team's Oct. 14 preseason game against the Los Angeles Clippers at the Ford Center. Everyone who donates food also will receive a Thunder Blue wristband.
The Feed The Children truck is scheduled to be in place by 3 p.m.
•Locals make D-League: Larry Turner, a former center at OU before transferring to Tennessee State, and Alfred Neale, a 6-foot-6 forward and Muskogee native who played at New Mexico, were selected in Wednesday's NBA D-League expansion draft. Both players were selected by the Reno Bighorns.
By Darnell Mayberry
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