PHILADELPHIA -- Regardless of his late night Tweet, Isaiah Thomas remains "steps away" from his Cavaliers debut, according to several people -- him included.

On Sunday, Thomas Tweeted that he was "locked in" and that it was almost time, though he didn't specify for what.

The two-time All-Star told cleveland.com at Cavs shootaround Monday that while he was referring to his eventual return to the court, he had not reached a point in his recovery from hip injuries where he would feel comfortable playing in games.

"If I could average 30 points a night, I'd be out there already," Thomas said. "I can't right now so I'm not out there yet."

Thomas said he participated in a portion of the Cavs' practice Sunday, but has yet to play 3-on-3 (and therefore hasn't done any kind of scrimmage with his team). He also said his conditioning is not where it needs to be.

Speaking generally of his progress, Thomas said "I'm almost there."

The Cavs have yet to publicly change their initial target date of Jan. 1 for his return, though by all appearances he'll be playing before then. He said one of his young sons believes he's playing on Christmas Day against the Warriors.

If that were true, Thomas will have played in games before then -- as the Cavs would be highly unlikely to trot him out there for the first time all season against Stephen Curry.

The Cavs want to see him play 3-on-3, go through full practices and see his conditioning improve before he plays. Much of that can be done during team shootarounds the morning of games, but the Cavs will likely practice sparingly over the next week.