Utah Jazz get one center back, but other big men remain out

The Jazz will have one of their longest-tenured players available for tonight's game at Houston.

Veteran Jarron Collins, who's been with Utah for eight seasons, traveled with the team after getting the thumbs-up to resume his transition into playing and practicing again from the Jazz's physician, Dr. Lyle Mason.

Collins injured his right arm in an offseason golf cart accident with his twin brother, Jason, and has only played twice this season due to a nagging inflamed right elbow.

The team's medical staff was going to re-evaluate Collins' status sometime after the beginning of 2009, but he suggested trying to come back before that because of the Jazz's injury situation. He had his check-up before Friday's game and got the green light.

That gave the Jazz an emergency backup plan in the middle because Utah played Friday night without leading big men Carlos Boozer, Mehmet Okur and Paul Millsap, who have injuries and whose returns are uncertain.

"I came back a little early," Collins said. "But it's a situation where we're shorthanded and I just wanted to make myself available if coach needed me. It's that simple."

Collins said he will start practicing and traveling with the team, but he isn't sure when he'll actually play again.

"Take it day-by-day," he said.

Utah will, however, be without Okur (lower-back spasms), Millsap (sprained left knee) and Boozer (strained left quad/bruised kneecap). Okur was scheduled to receive an epidural today in Utah, while Millsap was to stay home to continue resting and rehabbing his injured knee that has a PCL sprain.

Boozer will leave for Los Angeles where he will be re-evaluated and have a special MRI on Monday to further examine his injured knee that's sidelined him for 19 games so far.

Collins dressed for Friday's game against Dallas, but he didn't see any playing time during the Jazz's 97-88 victory.

The standout play of young centers Kosta Koufos and Kyrylo Fesenko, who both notched career-highs in scoring Friday, might help Collins ease back into the swing of things without pushing himself too hard.

Koufos, a 19-year-old rookie, tallied a career-best 18 points and eight rebounds, while second-year center Fesenko had personal-high eight points along with four rebounds and three blocked shots in the win.

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