Shaun Livingston's moves prove that his knee is better, and he's seeing more play

Charlotte Bobcats point guard Shaun Livingston called it a "step in the right direction.''

Had it been just that - a step - no one would have noticed. This was a leap along the baseline. It resulted in a dunk. And while you see that all the time in NBA games, this, for Livingston, was an "I'm OK'' moment.

Livingston moved gingerly his first 10 or so games back from taking off the preseason with pain in his left knee. Could you blame him? He suffered a knee injury so severe several years ago that there's no precedent for his recovery to resume a basketball career.

Livingston's play the last six or seven games is much more what the Bobcats anticipated when they guaranteed him $7 million over this season and next.

The raw numbers aren't so impressive - 5.4 points per game and 1.4 assists. But consider how efficient he is - 49-percent shooting from the field and 91 percent from the foul line - in the minutes he's getting.

Livingston played 20 or more minutes just once in the first 11 games. He's played 20 or more four times in the last nine games, including 28 each in Milwaukee and New Orleans. And he's attempting more post-ups and crossovers, moves that suggest he trusts his knee.

"For me, it's about endurance,'' Livingston described. "My output is definitely a lot more: I can practice longer. I can play at a higher level for longer periods of time.''

The rest of Livingston's basketball career is a continuous calculation - based on what his body tells him, how long can he practice? How long can he play?

"It's really the reaction afterward,'' Livingston said of when he knows he's overdone. "How does it feel? Is there any swelling? That lets me know how to pace it and where to go from there.

"The swelling will always be there. But the pain modification is the biggest factor.''