According to our friend Jon Santiago of Cowbell Kingdom, Marcus Thornton was on the practice court for the Kings today after being cleared for full contact. Thornton's been out with a quad contusion that turned into a hematoma. He's missed seven full games, and left the last game he played early. You can blame Dwight Howard for the damage.

When Thornton returns, possibly Thursday in Sacramento against the Blazers, the Kings will have a fully available for just the second game of Keith Smart's tenure. Chuck Hayes was injured in Smart's first game at the helm, and returned this past weekend against the Jazz.

The Kings offense hasn't exactly been lighting the world on fire since Thornton's absence, and Smart largely stayed away from Jimmer Fredette in the fourth quarter against the Warriors, so it would seem likely that Thornton will land back in the starting five between Tyreke Evans and John Salmons.