"Andrei Kirilenko couldn't keep from smiling while he talked about his injury situation before Saturday night's game.

Obviously, there's nothing particularly funny about an ankle sprain that's now kept him out of the past three games.

But Kirilenko can't wait to get back onto the court, and his giddiness reflected his belief that that is about to happen soon.

As in Monday at Sacramento.

Not that anybody was counting, but Kirilenko used the word "excited" three times in 49 seconds while talking about his hopes of returning against the Kings.

The Jazz's usual starting small forward is no longer wearing a walking boot, and he took his ankle for a test run Saturday.

He wasn't quite healed enough to play against OKC, but his improvement got his hopes up.

Kirilenko just needs his hops to get back up, too.

"Jumping (is) not there yet. It feels like a little slow, like I can't really get explosive," Kirilenko said. "But I'm feeling good — moving, running. I'm pretty excited."

Kirilenko, who's missed five games this year with ankle and back injuries, is cautiously making sure he's ready to return, though."