Manu Ginobili could return to lineup by Saturday

San Antonio Spurs' Manu Ginobili lies on the court after he was kneed by New Orleans Pelicans' Ryan Anderson during the second half at the AT&T Center, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. Anderson was called for an offensive foul. less San Antonio Spurs' Manu Ginobili lies on the court after he was kneed by New Orleans Pelicans' Ryan Anderson during the second half at the AT&T Center, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. Anderson was called for an ... more Photo: JERRY LARA, Staff / San Antonio Express-News Photo: JERRY LARA, Staff / San Antonio Express-News Image 1 of / 6 Caption Close Manu Ginobili could return to lineup by Saturday 1 / 6 Back to Gallery

Manu Ginobili, who has missed 10 games because of a testicular injury, participated in Tuesday's practice, and could be back on the court faster than expected.

"He's going more quickly then we would have imagined," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "He's not going to play in this back-to-back or anything, but his progress has been much quicker than we thought."

The Spurs (50-9) play back-to-back games against Detroit and New Orleans on Wednesday and Thursday. Ginobili could be back as soon as Saturday, when the Spurs host the Sacramento Kings.

Ginobili had testicular surgery after sustaining a knee the groin during a game against the New Orleans Pelicans on Feb. 3. The team said the reserve guard would be sidelined at least a month, though some estimates put his recovery time closer to six weeks.

Manu Ginobili getting a good workout at practice this morning.... #Spurs pic.twitter.com/pYTRYi3SCX — Jabari Young (@JabariJYoung) March 1, 2016

Tony Parker said Ginobili fully participated in practice, even partaking in the running drills.

"Everybody was saying like six weeks and maybe longer, and now it looks like he could be back next week," Parker said of Ginobili. "I don't know what they're going to decide."

Ginobili, a 38-year-old reserve shooting guard, was averaging 10 points on 45.1 percent shooting, three rebounds and 3.3 assists in 19.7 minutes before the injury.

mrohlin@express-news.net