INDEPENDENCE, Ohio -- Cleveland Cavaliers swingman David Nwaba said his achy right knee is "feeling a little bit better," but is not 100 percent.

"It's still pretty sore. Just something I've got to fight through," he said following Friday's shootaround. "See if it gets better over time."

Nwaba returned to the lineup on Wednesday night, his first game since being shut down for more than two weeks because of continued soreness. He scored nine points in 10 minutes, as Cleveland outscored New York by 14 when he was on the court.

While sidelined, Nwaba continued to get treatment and tried taking it easy. When he didn't see the improvement he was hoping for, he decided to give it a go.

"I just felt like it was something I could still play on," Nwaba said. "I wanted to be out there. I felt like it was time to return."

Nwaba said the timing of his comeback had nothing to do with Tristan Thompson going down or any other injury on the roster. After his first action in weeks against New York Wednesday night, the 25-year old known for his rugged defense said his knee feels close to the same.

The positive is it doesn't feel worse after taking contact, running up and down the court and leaping for an emphatic dunk that punctuated Cleveland's 113-106 win. That moment, according to Nwaba, was an important one in clearing a mental hurdle.

"I think it's more just being hesitant," he said. "When it comes to the game there's a lot of adrenaline, I'm not thinking about it. But there's sometimes when I'm a bit hesitant, just try to fight through that. It's all a mental thing at this point."

The Cavs' plan is to bring him back slowly. They've seen his importance. Given his play this season, he should remain a mainstay in head coach Larry Drew's rotation. Nwaba, who was wearing a knee brace during shootaround on Friday as a precaution, wants to use this upcoming stretch to get more comfortable -- both physically and mentally.

This is an important season for him. Along with how he was playing, knowing what's at stake was part of the frustration of missing nine straight games. Nwaba had just entered the lineup, given the responsibility of defending the opponent's best scorer, trying to solidify himself as a stopper. It was the opportunity he signed up for when bypassing other offers from contenders.

He wanted to bet on himself, inking a one-year deal in Cleveland, hoping a bigger role would help him cash in this summer when numerous teams will have money to spend in free agency. When healthy, he has showcased his ability. Now he just needs to get back to that point.

"It doesn't help being sidelined, but at the same time it's still a long season, 82 games," Nwaba said. "There's still a lot of time that I'll play basketball."