"Indiana Pacers swingman Mike Dunleavy and forward Tyler Hansbrough took another step toward being able to play their normal minutes Friday when they each had their playing time restriction increased to 24 minutes.

Dunleavy and Hansbrough had been limited to around 20 minutes a game as they worked their way back from knee and shin problems, respectively

The increase in minutes for Dunleavy will allow coach Jim O'Brien to use him for longer stretches and to have him available at the end of close games.

O'Brien ran into a problem using Dunleavy last week at Sacramento and earlier this week against Portland when he took him out during a close part of the game in the fourth quarter. The Pacers were down seven points by the time Dunleavy re-entered with about two minutes left."