What will it take to get Steve Nash back on the court?

As the Lakers lose game after game, what will it take to get Steve Nash back on the court?

Nash is recovering from a non-displaced leg fracture that took him out of the team’s second game of the season. The Lakers are now 8-10 on the season, losing five of their last seven.

Nash has increased his activity but still hasn’t practiced with the team. He’s accompanying the Lakers on their current road trip but isn’t expected to play.

Normally, a coach wants an injured player to get a full practice in before greenlighting a return. Coach Mike D’Antoni is still feeling out the situation.

“I don’t know,� D’Antoni said earlier in the week. “I can’t see in the immediate future him coming right, but I could see him coming back in a week or so.�

The difficulty is finding time in the schedule to run a practice.

“We have one in Oklahoma City,� D’Antoni said, referring to Thursday, but will he do that to the team after back-to-back games in Houston and New Orleans?

If Nash can get cleared to practice on either Dec. 8 or 10, perhaps he’ll be cleared before the team’s four-game road trip that extends through Dec. 16.

Full practices will be few and far between, although D’Antoni noted that he’s not against scheduling a small one if and when Nash is ready.

“He can go three-on-three, even if the other guys can’t practice,� D’Antoni said. “On the day of a game, we can play him with other guys. We can get something in, even if we have a game that night.�

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Email Eric Pincus at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @EricPincus.