CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Charlotte Hornets forward Jamal Mashburn has delayed a decision on how to treat his lower abdominal strain until after he gets another medical opinion, the Charlotte Observer reported Wednesday.

If Mashburn needs surgery, he could miss two months or more of the season. He left Tuesday's practice before reporters were admitted, and could not be reached for comment.

Hornets vice president Bob Bass said the injury is fairly rare for basketball players. The options are to rest it or repair it, either by full surgery or possibly a less invasive arthroscopic procedure.

"We're still getting information because it's a rather unusual injury," Bass told the Observer. "I don't think that I could answer (how long he'd be out) because we don't know to what extent the surgery would be."

Bass said Mashburn originally injured himself during last season's Eastern Conference semifinals against the Milwaukee Bucks. He played with the injury in Game 7 -- the last game of the season -- and felt it would heal itself with offseason rest.

"He rested it, he didn't do anything for a couple of months, and like every other injury, it gets well in" the summer, Bass said.

But Mashburn reaggravated the injury in a practice Nov. 19, and has since gone on the injured list.

Coach Paul Silas looks forward to ending the suspense over whether Mashburn needs surgery.

"I just want to get it over as soon as possible one way or the other," Silas said. "That's up to him, of course. He's really concerned about the thing and rightly so. He rested it all summer long."

After leading the Hornets in scoring last season, Mashburn struggled in his first nine games this season. He was shooting 38 percent when he went on the injured list.

"All I knew is when he came back, he wasn't the same Mash," Silas said. "I didn't know the reason. At least I know now that it was because of injury."