"David Lee sat at his locker Monday night with a peripherally inserted central catheter in his right arm, stitches in his left arm and a variety of cuts, pokes and scrapes along each arm.

Still, he was wearing a huge smile.

Considering what he endured the past 12 days, it's no wonder the Warriors' power forward was in great spirits as he spoke publicly for the first time since having his elbow infected by an inadvertent Wilson Chandler bite Nov. 10.

"It was very, very scary," Lee said. "The way infections work, they couldn't find the right antibiotic. They were using strong stuff and nothing worked. They were telling me that it had to get better soon or they were going to have to cut it from the biceps to the forearm, filet it open and cut out the muscles.

"The fact that it could be limited to two weeks is a real blessing."

Lee expects to have the stitches removed today and the catheter Wednesday, and he's holding out hope that he can join the team at the end of its three-game road trip, which starts Wednesday at Houston. More likely, he'll be ready for their return to the Bay Area, when they play San Antonio next Tuesday or Phoenix on Dec. 2."