PHOENIX -- Phoenix Suns guard Penny Hardaway will undergo surgery on Saturday to repair a torn ligament in his right thumb and will be sidelined six to eight weeks.

	Hardaway

Hardaway said he injured the thumb in practice Nov. 21 and had continued playing, thinking it was just a jam.

But he repeatedly reinjured it and was examined Friday by hand specialist Dr. Robert Wilson, who told him the injury could threaten his career if he continued to play without surgery.

"It's our recommendation that because of the unstable nature of the thumb that he should get it repaired now rather than run the risk of arthritis developing or a career-threatening type of injury,'' team doctor Thomas Carter said.

Hardaway said the news was especially hard to take because he seemed to have finally overcome his chronic knee problems and was an important part of the lineup of the surprising Suns.

"I started crying,'' he said. "I've been through much agony and pain with my knees and trying to come back and play and all the negative that comes along through that and basically won that battle so far. This was just terrible.''

Hardaway had played in all 36 games and started 33. He was averaging 10.9 points, 4.2 assists and 5 rebounds while accepting a lower-profile spot in the Suns' offense.

Coach Frank Johnson said Hardaway has been a steadying influence on the young team.

"He's been a big player for us in the clutch,'' Johnson said. "It's a big loss for us. He's certainly a coach on the floor. He sees a lot of things.''

Hardaway's career has been plagued by injuries, both in Orlando and with the Suns, but those were knee problems.

He said the thumb injury came when he hit Casey Jacobsen in a scramble for the ball in practice.

He never publicly mentioned his sore thumb and planned to keep playing, especially because the team was doing so well and he felt no pain in his knees.

"As long as I could run, I was going to be out there,'' Hardaway said, "but I didn't know how much damage I was actually doing.''

He said he decided to go to the specialist after he reinjured the thumb against Cleveland Dec. 29. The trainer was massaging his thumb and was alarmed.

"It was like really loose,'' Hardaway said. "It's not supposed to be that way. It kept coming out of joint while he was massaging it and he was like `That's not right.'''

Joe Johnson started in Hardaway's shooting guard spot against Memphis Friday night. Coach Johnson said Jacobsen also would get more playing time because of Hardaway's injury.

Phoenix likely will sign a guard, too.