NEW YORK >> Eight weeks into Vlatko Cancar’s recovery from left knee surgery, the Nuggets are confident his injury will not be season-ending, coach Michael Malone said Wednesday night. Cancar, 27, landed awkwardly after a dunk on Nov. 19 and spent two weeks seeking medical advice regarding multiple surgical options. The Nuggets forward had already missed the entire 2023-24 season due to a torn ACL in the same knee. He ultimately chose to undergo arthroscopic surgery in early December, with the Nuggets setting a reevaluation timeline of eight weeks.

“He’s making progress, obviously. It was a pretty aggressive procedure that he went through, and the goal with that was to come back and be able to play this season — which you love where his head is at while making that decision,” Malone said at Madison Square Garden.

“I think he’s been playing in some small, sided games (not full-court), ramping up. But as far as a return to play, when he’ll be cleared to play, I haven’t been given any real update. So I can’t imagine it’s any time soon. Hopefully it is. Because obviously, every time he’s gotten a chance to play, he’s played well, and then he winds up getting hurt.”

Cancar traveled with the team this week on its five-game road trip. He was filling in as Denver’s backup center while Nikola Jokic was away from the team when he suffered the injury in Memphis.Cancar re-signed with the Nuggets last summer on a one-year veteran minimum contract.

“When I speak to him, he’s busting his butt to get back, making progress,” Malone said. “He’s in a good place mentally and physically. But just not close enough to where he’s ready to start ramping up to return to play.”