"The splint was temporarily off Antawn Jamison's left hand Thursday night prior to the Cavs' game against the Portland Trail Blazers, exposing the nine stitches needed to close up his pinky finger following surgery.

The stitches are symbolic of the Cavs' 2010-11 season. It has been a patchwork group of rookies, journeymen and fill-ins as the Cavs endured major injuries during a painful rebuilding season.

Jamison is back now for the rest of the season. He took a week off after surgery and returned to Charlotte, N.C., since he was helpless with one good hand. He spent some time with his kids before returning to the Cavs' kids and his role as a different type of fatherly mentor.

''There's a month left in the season . . . it's not time to go on vacation,'' Jamison said. ''We still have work that needs to be done. I'm going to be in these guys' ears and let them know that the most important thing is to finish off on a good note.''

Jamison's fractured finger is the first broken bone of his life. He has endured bone spurs in his ankles and arthroscopic surgeries on his knees, but called the pinky injury ''by far, one of the most difficult injuries I've had.''

His season is officially over. The initial timeline indicated he could've returned for perhaps the final week of the season, but with the Cavs long eliminated from the playoffs, that doesn't make much sense to anyone.

He'll finish the season averaging 18 points and 6.7 rebounds, his lowest numbers as a starter since his rookie year. Between serving as the captain of the Washington Wizards through Gilbert Arenas' gun scandal last season and serving as team spokesman in the first season post LeBron James, Jamison didn't hide how draining the last two seasons have been."