Although Rashard Lewis remains off the court as he recovers from a hand injury, the Seattle SuperSonics are playing better on the court.

With one of their top players still a few weeks from returning, the SuperSonics look to close out an already successful homestand with another victory when they host the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday.

A win would give Seattle (17-26) a 5-2 record on its longest stretch of home games of the season.

Lewis, the team's second-leading scorer behind Ray Allen, has missed the last 16 games after tearing the tendon sheath on the back of his right hand on Dec. 20. Doctors cleared Lewis to resume shooting this week. He's not ready to participate in contract drills, but could return to action right before or soon after the Feb. 18 NBA All-Star game in Las Vegas.

"I still got a lot of stiffness in it, and I don't have the full range of motion in my hand yet,'' Lewis said. "Obviously you have to push it more, use a little more strength, and I can feel a little sting in my hand when I shoot it from far out."

Lewis and Allen - who missed nine games with a foot injury - haven't been on the court together since Dec. 2. Seattle is 10-15 since then, but has won four of its last five games, including a 102-100 victory over Minnesota on Friday.

Allen scored 25 of his 36 points against the Timberwolves in the second half, and got help from rookie Mickael Gelabale, who hit a jumper with 29 seconds left to tie the game then made one of two free throws to help secure the win.

Gelabale finished with 17 points - well above his 4.7 average - and eight rebounds. The 23-year-old forward played five years professionally in Europe and could be a reliable contributor like teammates Chris Wilcox and Nick Collison, who have combined for eight double-doubles in the last five games.

"I'm sure Ray is happy to get some help," Seattle coach Bob Hill said. "I'm happy for (Gelabale) and he's happy too."

Allen scored 44 points in a 117-112 loss to Denver on Tuesday and is averaging 40.0 points in his last two games.

The Clippers (21-22) had their four-game winning streak snapped Saturday in a 101-87 loss to the Timberwolves. Despite the setback, Los Angeles finished 4-1 on its five-game homestand, but must now hit the road - where it's 5-14 - for eight of its next nine games.

Elton Brand scored 25 points and had 12 rebounds for his 19th double-double of the season and first in his last four games. It wasn't enough, though, as the Clippers committed a season-high 26 turnovers that resulted in 32 Minnesota points..

"We did everything to beat ourselves tonight,'' Clippers guard Sam Cassell said. "You have to credit their defense because they took advantage of our turnovers. All of these games are big for us, but this game was huge. We just didn't take advantage of it."

With Saturday's loss, the Clippers fell into a tie with the Timberwolves for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Seattle won the first meeting between these teams this season, 95-85 on Nov. 22 at Los Angeles. The Clippers have won their last two visits to Seattle.