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Hornets coach predicts Eric Gordon will return Saturday

Eric Gordon has missed all but nine Hornets games in the last two seasons. (Layne Murdoch/NBAE via Getty Images)

Eric Gordon has missed all but nine games for the Hornets in the last two seasons. (Layne Murdoch/NBAE via Getty Images)

Hornets coach Monty Williams predicted shooting guard Eric Gordon would make his season debut Saturday against the Bobcats, according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune.

A patella tendon disorder and bone bruise on his right knee that required arthroscopic surgery have forced Gordon to miss all but nine games last season and the first 27 games of this season.

Gordon's right knee has been pain-free since Monday.

"If I had to guess it would be Saturday against Charlotte,’’ Williams said before Wednesday night’s game against the Orlando Magic. "A lot of that is me, and we want to make sure that we bring him back when he’s in a lot better shape. He’s spent so much time rehabbing and getting his quad stronger, but we have to make sure he’s in a good place before he comes back.’’

Gordon's presence should immediately help the struggling Hornets who are one loss way from matching a franchise-record 12-game losing streak set in 1990.

"He changes the way we play with his ability to do a number of things,’’ Williams said of Gordon’s impending return. "Shooting the ball and attacking the basket and defending certain guys. It will take him not long to get back to the frame of mind that he needs to play and that’s always at a high level. But we want to make sure that he has the conditioning level that he needs to play well.''