Kevin Martin's recovery from broken wrist 'a slow process'

From Rachel Blount, making an appearance today as the Wolves reporter:

Timberwolves guard Kevin Martin was in good spirits Friday, when he spoke to the media for the first time since he had surgery to repair a broken bone in his right wrist. Fresh from a medical checkup that showed the wrist is healing well, Martin said his recovery from the Nov. 19 injury will be "a slow process,'' but he was glad to be back among teammates and friends during a shootaround at Life Time Fitness.

As the depleted Wolves prepared for Friday night's game against Houston at Target Center, Martin said he thought he had only sprained his wrist during a 37-point performance in a victory over New York. Instead, he will spend the next six weeks monitoring the mending of a broken bone. Martin, Ricky Rubio (sprained ankle), Nikola Pekovic (sprained wrist) and Ronny Turiaf (sore hip) remain on the shelf; Mo Williams (back spasms) is listed as questionable for Friday's game, and Shabazz Muhammad (sore left ankle) was upgraded Friday morning to probable.

The bone Martin broke is the same one he broke in his left hand in 2009. He anticipates a more challenging recovery this time around, he said, because the injury is to his shooting hand.

"It's going to be interesting to see how this plays along, since it is my shooting hand,'' Martin said. "I do remember (with) my left, there was a lot of soreness. But I don't have a left hand anyway, so I didn't really need that. But with the right, it's going to be a little tougher rehab. I'll have to put in a lot more time with this one.''

As he recovers, Martin plans to spend plenty of time around the team, and he is providing advice to young players trying to fill the void left by the rash of injuries. He said he spoke with rookie Andrew Wiggins on Friday morning and urged him to be aggressive, saying he would rather see him go three-for-20 than four-for-eight. While Martin said it's impossible to predict how the increased minutes and responsibility will affect the progress of the younger Wolves, he told them to keep forging ahead despite the hardships.

"I think I can give them a little leadership,'' Martin said. "But at the end of the day, it's going to be them. I'm not going to be out there with them. I talked to Andrew this morning, and a couple other guys. If they think this is the toughest thing that's going to happen to them in their careers, then they're going to have a pretty good career. This won't be the lowest point for them through their career. But they can always learn from lessons like this.''

Martin expects the stitches to be removed from his wrist next week. Until then, he said, his physical activity is limited to walking.

The Rockets are banged up, too. Dwight Howard has missed seven games with a strained right knee and is doubtful; Pat Beverley (strained left hamstring), Isaiah Canaan (left ankle sprain) and Terrence Jones (left leg nerve inflammation) won't play.