DeMar DeRozan is inching closer to a return.

The Toronto Raptors' shooting guard participated in his first full practice Thursday since suffering a torn tendon in his groin in late November. DeRozan has missed the team's last 16 games, but the Raptors have continued to play well without him, going 11-5 over that stretch.

There's still no timetable as to when the 2014 All-Star will return to game action, but he shouldn't be too far away provided he doesn't encounter any setbacks.

DeRozan averaged 19.4 points on 39.4 percent shooting from the field through 16 games before sustaining the injury after slipping on a drive attempt in a loss to the Dallas Mavericks. Point guard Kyle Lowry, who's averaging a career-high 20.7 points per game, is the only Raptor scoring more than DeRozan.

Raptors head coach Dwane Casey has employed a number of different lineups since DeRozan went down, giving players such as James Johnson, Greivis Vasquez and Landry Fields a look with the starting unit.

Johnson has excelled while starting the last five games on the wing alongside Terrence Ross. He's averaged 10.4 points on 61.5 percent shooting from the field, 5.6 rebounds, 1.4 steals and one block per contest.

The Eastern Conference-leading Raptors have a pair of tough road games to begin the New Year against the Golden State Warriors and Phoenix Suns before returning home Jan. 8 to begin a six-game homestand.