San Antonio Spurs center Pau Gasol is returning to the lineup Friday night at Denver.

He had missed San Antonio's last 26 games because of a stress fracture in his left foot.

Gasol, in his 17th season, had taken on a reserve role this season and averaged 6.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists as a member of the team's second unit.

"It's around the ballpark [return date] we had in mind," Gasol told reporters before the game. "I am glad I was able to recover well and heal well even though it was a little tricky at first and it wasn't clear cut what was going on."