New York -- New York Knicks guard Derrick Rose will return to the court Monday night against the Los Angeles Lakers after missing the past four games with an ankle injury. The Knicks, however, will be without starting center Joakim Noah because of a hamstring ailment.
Kyle O'Quinn will start at center in place of Noah. With Rose back, point guard Brandon Jennings returns to the second unit.
The Knicks went 1-3 in Rose's most recent absence and have gone 2-7 overall in games that he's missed with injury. Rose also missed some time for back spasms.
The health of Rose's knees, however, hasn't been an issue this year. Knee injuries have hampered Rose over the past five seasons, playing a large role in the point guard missing 60 percent of his games in that span.
Rose, a free agent this summer, has been a strong scoring presence for the Knicks this year when healthy. He entered play Monday averaging 17.9 points and 4.4 assists per game for New York (22-30).
