Injury bug waning? Johnson, Kirilenko, Blatche expected back vs. Spurs

Mike Miller, Andray Blatche
Andray
Mike Miller, Andray Blatche
The Nets may welcome back Andray Blatche (center), Joe Johnson, and Andrei Kirilenko Thursday. (AP)

The Nets may have something close to a full roster — without Brook Lopez, of course — when they face the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday.

Guard Joe Johnson, forward Andrei Kirilenko, and center Andray Blatche all did physical work with the team in today’s practice, getting through without any injuries, according to reports from team practice.

Kirilenko had missed three straight games after reporting to the team with a sore left calf on Wednesday. He told The Brooklyn Game last week that the calf injury had no connection whatsoever to the back spasms he’d felt earlier in the year, and that his back felt “perfect.”

Blatche bruised his hip in the first half of the team’s 120-95 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder Friday, attempting to return to the game to no avail. He traveled with the team to Indiana Saturday in the hopes of playing, but sat out both Saturday and Monday to rest the hip. Blatche also sat out four games earlier this week after getting sent home for “personal reasons.”

Johnson sat out to rest with left knee tendinitis in the team’s 108-102 victory over the 76ers, the second game he’s missed all year. According to coach Jason Kidd, Johnson had dealt with tendinitis for a couple of weeks, but is “one not to complain” and tried to play through the pain.