WASHINGTON -- Gilbert Arenas said he hopes to return from
a second knee operation and be back in the Washington Wizards'
lineup within two months.
But he left open the possibility it might be longer than that.
"I don't really know. I keep pushing it back," the All-Star
point guard told the team's Web site Saturday. "Hopefully, I
will be able to come back sometime between the middle of February
to the middle of March."
For the first time, Arenas also said that if he's not better by then, he might not play this season. "I have to protect the rest of my career, too, so I won't jeopardize that for just 15 games if I'm not 100 percent," he said Saturday, according to The Washington Post. "If it's aching, if I'm out here practicing and it's swelling up then, I'll see you next year."
Arenas had surgery in April, then needed another operation in
November. At the time, his recovery was expected to take three
months.
"This is not the same injury as last time, where I had all the
pain. The first surgery was a rough one," Arenas said. "This is
the best it has looked since I got hurt the first time. I am pain
free now."
The Wizards are 16-15 heading into Sunday's home game against
the Seattle SuperSonics. They are 13-10 since Arenas was sidelined.
Arenas averaged 22.4 points in eight games for Washington before
the injury.
Information from The Associated Press is included in this report