The Memphis Grizzlies have been without 6-9 Zach Randolph since Jan. 3 due to a torn right medial collateral ligament.. He and teammate Tony Allen could be found Monday night hosting a party for women and children from a local homeless shelter in honor of Valentine's Day.

"I come from a single-parent home. My mother was on welfare. It's really important for me to give back," said Randolph, according to the Memphis Commercial Appeal. "These people probably don't have one special person in their lives to help them out."

Of course, the Grizz would like to also see Randolph back on the court. It looks like that is about to happen. The Commercial Appeal reported Monday that Randolph has been cleared to begin non-contact basketball drills on the court. That puts him on pace to return in early March.

There is no target date set, but the paper theorizes that Randolph could be back for the March 7 game against the Golden State Warriors.

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The New York Knicks expect Amar'e Stoudemire to be back in the lineup Tuesday night when the team takes on the Toronto Raptors after a week off to mourn his brother's sudden death. Fellow forward Carmelo Anthony, though, will miss a few more games and return "toward (the) end of the week," according to ESPN New York.

Anthony, who has been out with a strained right groin, does not expect to have any effect on the play of second-year point guard Jeremy Lin, who has shockingly led the team to five straight wins.

"When I get back, Jeremy will have the ball in his hands and I'm playing off of that," Anthony said Monday, according to the site. "I know there's questions about, 'Can I fit in?' and stuff like that, but this is like a dream come true to me. It takes some pressure off of me. I don't have to play point guard. I don't have to try to get Amar'e 20 points, try to get this guy 20 points, me try to go out there and get 25-30 points a night, play defense, rebound do the whole thing."

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New Orleans Hornets shooting guard Eric Gordon has only been in two games this season because of a bone bruise and now won't be back for another six weeks due to arthroscopic surgery on his right knee that he's undergoing Tuesday, according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune.

Gordon said his knee was sore when he started playing in the team's season opener and then he knocked knees with Grant Hill of the Phoenix Suns to make it worse, the paper notes. "After consulting with out medical staff, we concluded that surgery was the best route and in the best interest of Eric for the long term," General Manager Dell Demps said in a release Monday, the paper reports. "We had hoped with rest and rehab, Eric's knee would have healed. Eric is eager to return to the court and we are confident Hornet fans will get to see him soon." You can bet the Hornets, the Western Conference's worst team with a 5-23 record, would like to see Gordon as soon as he is able.

The 23-year-old Gordon, who was picked seventh overall in the 2008 draft by the Los Angeles Clippers and joined the Hornets via the Chris Paul trade this past offseason, averaged 22.3 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game last year. In the two games he's played this season, Gordon has averaged 21 points, five rebounds, and two assists per game.

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On Wednesday, J.R. Smith will be eligible to sign on with an NBA team once his Chinese team's season ends and the Los Angeles Clippers plan to be right in there with elbows up trying to snag him, a source tells ESPN Los Angeles.

The season-ending injury to Chauncey Billups last week upped an interest in Smith that already existed for the Clips, the source tells the site.

Clippers point guard Chris Paul played with Smith for two seasons on the New Orleans Hornets and he's now "taken a lead role in recruiting Smith," the source tells the site. The pair also share an agent, Leon Rose, ESPN points out.

The site notes that the New York Knicks "are the presumed favorite to land Smith because they can offer him both a large role on the team, and their pro-rated $2.5 million mini mid-level exception." If Smith ends up there, he'd be reuniting with Carmelo Anthony, who he played with while they both were employed by the Denver Nuggets.

Other teams that may be interested in adding Smith include the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat.

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Amar'e Stoudemire was supposed to be the savior of the New York Knicks. Instead, the Big Apple's basketball fans have fallen in the past week for point guard Jeremy Lin, who has led the team to its season-high five-game winning streak.

Stoudemire has missed the last four games as he mourned the sudden death of his brother. Now he may be back in the lineup for the team Tuesday when it takes on the Toronto Raptors Tuesday "if he is mentally and physically ready," according to the New York Post.

There is some fear that the return of Stoudemire could upset the chemistry of the team's winning ways, the paper notes, though you'll never hear that from Lin. Meanwhile, the Post notes that it remains unclear when Carmelo Anthony, who has been out with a groin strain since Feb. 6, will return to the lineup.

"When they come back, I don't know how long or even if there will be an adjustment period, but I think obviously they're two of the top players in the league," Lin said, according to the Post. "We just have to find a way to quickly come together and ride this momentum. … We don't know how good we'll be. The potential is there."

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Denver Nuggets 6-11 center Nene tried to sign on with another club in the offseason but ended up returning to the Mile High City. Since then, he's had a difficult time staying fully healthy.

He had a problem with his left heel that made playing difficult and now his left calf is hurting enough that he may be on the bench when the team takes on the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday, according to the Denver Post.

"How long Nene will be out, I don't know," coach George Karl said Saturday after his team beat the Indiana Pacers 113-109. "He'll probably miss Tuesday's game, maybe a few more. ... I haven't heard the specifics, just someone whispering to me that it might be four or five days."

The 29-year-old native of Brazil is averaging 13.4 points and 7.8 rebounds per game.

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Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose has missed the last two games due to an ailing back and the Sporting News reports that he'll see a back specialist when the team returns to Chicago for its six-game homestand that starts Tuesday against the Sacramento Kings.

Rose noted that he's never had back spasms like this before and isn't sure where they came from, the Sporting News reports. "Hopefully, I can just be OK soon," Rose said, the Sporting News reports.  Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said that Rose had had some back problems in high school, the site notes.

In the games Rose has missed this season, the team has gone 5-2, but the News points out that the wins haven't come against any league powerhouses with the victories coming over the Charlotte Bobcats twice, the Washington Wizards, the Phoenix Suns, and Cleveland Cavaliers.

It remains unclear when Rose will return to the lineup. He's averaging 22 points, 7.8 assists, and 3.4 rebounds per game.

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The Milwaukee Bucks currently hold the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. There is still a lot of this short season left and Brandon Jennings could help the Bucks make a strong push.

Whatever happens, though, it is extremely doubtful that the third-year point guard will sign an extension with the team this summer as he is eligible to do. Jennings told ESPN that he wants to not box himself in and be available the following summer when the 22-year-old can be a free agent.

"I am going to keep my options open, knowing that the time is coming up," Jennings told ESPN. "I'm doing my homework on big-market teams."

However, Bucks fans shouldn't give up just yet on the dream of having Jennings as a building block for the long-term: "I'm not saying I won't [sign an extension with the Bucks] and I'm not saying I will," he said, ESPN reports. "I'm just keeping my options open."

It's kind of funny to hear Jennings, who backed out of playing for the University of Arizona so he could go play in Italy, talk about doing his homework. Jennings, who was picked 10^th overall in the 2009 draft, is averaging 18.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game this season.

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The New Jersey Nets brought shooting guard Keith Bogans in only slightly more than a week ago because the team's roster was so depleted by injuries. So what does Bogans do? Gets seriously hurt.

The New York Daily News reports that the 31-year-old vet of seven teams "was diagnosed with a complete tear of his deltoid ligament and a fractured ankle" on Thursday and will miss the rest of the season after having surgery.

The 8-19 Nets, who have lost six of their last seven games, are still only four games out of playoff contention at this point, and are again playing short-handed.

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The Toronto Raptors have taken to the floor without forward Andrea Bargnani 14 times so far this season and it's looking like he's going to miss a few more games with his strained right calf, according to the National Post.

The 26-year-old suffered the injury in January and returned after six games, but re-injured it this month and the site notes that "it would not be a surprise if he sat out until the all-star break, two weeks from now," though it could be longer.

"His timeframe is extended, whether it is two weeks or three weeks, whatever it is," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said Thursday, the National Post reports. "We're not putting a day on it. Extended is beyond day to day, I think."

In the 13 games he's played, Bargnani is averaging 23.5 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, both career highs.

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