Sasha Vujacic played 13 scoreless minutes Friday against Orlando in his return from a two-game absence due to back spasms, while Derek Fisher said the groin strain he suffered Wednesday night did not limit him at all.

They'll soon be joined by Luke Walton, who tested his sore right foot before the game, pronounced himself ready to return to practice this weekend and said he expects to play Monday against Cleveland. He had been hoping to return from a seven-game absence Friday, but Coach Phil Jackson's decision to cancel practice Thursday robbed Walton of the chance to prove to the coaching staff that he was healthy enough.

"Although I'm excited to be pain free, I haven't really tested it," Walton said. "I went to bed early (Wednesday night), I woke up and I was waiting for the call. I was like, no practice? What do you mean no practice?"

The biggest challenge for Vujacic was the time he spent on the bench, not anything he did on the court. In an effort to keep his back from locking up, Vujacic either walked around stretching or lay flat on his back on the court when he wasn't in the game.

Vujacic made his first appearance with 2:16 remaining in the first quarter, picking up his first foul seconds later but showing no lingering effects from the injury. He did miss all three of his shots.

"It feels good, better than I thought it would," Vujacic said. "It was the first game back, so Coach didn't know if I could do it. I have to work even harder now to get back in the rotation."

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BYNUM OUTPLAYED AGAIN

Jackson was not pleased with Andrew Bynum's effort after he managed only three rebounds in 33 minutes. Bynum's counterpart, Orlando's Dwight Howard, grabbed 20 rebounds, including eight on the offensive glass.

"It doesn't make sense," Jackson said. "If Howard gets eight offensive rebounds and he is going to the basket all the time, then Andrew should somewhat be able to compete at least at that level rebounding-wise."

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CRAWFORD UPDATE

Averaging a team-high 20.9 points and 3.2 assists hasn't earned D-Fenders guard Joe Crawford a look from an NBA team yet, but the former Lakers second-round draft choice is trying not to get impatient.

"I try to focus on Basketball and let my agent handle that stuff," Crawford said. "If I keep playing well, hopefully a team will take notice."

Reach Jeff Eisenberg at 951-368-9357 or jeisenberg@PE.com