Roy and Camby both return to practice

Tualatin, Ore. — Coaches are always looking for that extra something in practice, but Wednesday, Blazers coach Nate McMillan got that extra somebody. Actually, make that extra somebodies.

Brandon Roy and Marcus Camby each participated in practice for the first time since undergoing knee surgery last month. True, the pair logged only 30 minutes of court time apiece, but the fact that they were able to take the floor at all was a minor victory.

“I was excited waking up this morning. I was happy to know I was going to get involved in practice,” Roy said. “I haven’t been able to compete in so long.”

Roy said he was encouraged by the fact that he was able to get into the paint and make a couple shots, adding that he’s been able to move “pretty-much pain free.”

So does that mean he’ll see action Friday at Toronto? Or maybe Sunday at Detroit?

“I don’t anticipate him playing this weekend,” McMillan said. “We’re going to bring him back slowly. The game plan is to slowly work him and increase his minutes. There’s not a timetable as far as when he’s going to return.”

McMillan’s assessment contradicts Roy’s initial prediction; the guard telling reporters last week that he anticipated returning either Friday or Sunday. Roy said that Portland general manager Rich Cho recently “reeled me in” and confessed that “maybe I got a little ahead of myself.”

Roy added that he plans to come off the bench for his first few games back, but refused to get too specific about the state of his knees — eschewing comparisons about how they feel now vs. last month or last year.

He did, however, say that “if I can play pain-free, I think I’m a really good player.”

McMillan said that there have been some changes to offensive sets that will require Roy to adjust. But what about his teammates? Will they be able to adapt to a former All-Star who’s been explicit in months past about his desire to handle the ball?

“He’s an All-star,” LaMarcus Aldridge said. “I don’t see it being much of an issue putting him back in the rotation.”

Camby was not available after Wednesday’s practice, but was able to get up and down the court during. Kind of.

“Camby is moving,” McMillan said. “He’s not moving smoothly, but he was out there moving.”

Matt Calkins can be contacted at 360-735-4528 or matt.calkins@columbian.com