WESTWEGO, La. -- Baron Davis has returned to practice for the New Orleans Hornets and said he expects to play Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Lakers.

	Davis

Davis has missed the past six games with back spasms related to a herniated disk suffered at the end of last season and which may at some point require surgery if Davis can't continue to alleviate the pain through rest and stretching.

Davis hit the practice floor Monday for the first time since leaving a Dec. 31 game against Indiana and appeared to practice at full speed.

"I still feel I'm on the right track, and things are getting better for me,'' Davis said. "I just have to stick to my treatment and therapy. Right now I'm not where I want to be, but I'm working toward it, and that's a positive thing. I had a pretty good day in practice, but the games are a lot different.''

The Hornets have lost four of their past six games -- including four in a row -- without Davis, who is averaging 17.6 points and seven assists.

"It's good to see him out there,'' coach Paul Silas said. "The difference is like night and day when he's running the show.''

David Wesley, who has started at point guard in Davis' absence, said he was so pleased that he considered buying Davis breakfast Monday morning. With Davis' return, Wesley returned to shooting guard, his regular spot.

"It's just nice to know that he's back, because you can tell that the rhythm is different,'' Wesley said.

While Davis is back for now, shooting guard Courtney Alexander is expected to miss as much as two weeks.

Alexander injured his groin in last Friday's 101-99 overtime loss to the Detroit Pistons.

An MRI test indicated Saturday that Alexander has a strained left groin and not a tear, but the injury is bad enough to warrant putting Alexander on the injured list, Silas said.

Alexander will replace guard Bryce Drew on the injured list once Drew, taken off the active roster on Jan. 10 with an inflamed left foot, fulfills the league requirement to remain inactive for five games.

On Friday, the Hornets signed veteran guard Robert Pack to a 10-day contract to help fill the void left by Davis.

Pack averaged 9.5 points and 4.9 assists in 498 games with six teams in 11 seasons in the NBA. In 16 games with Minnesota last season, he averaged 3.9 points and 3.1 assists.

Also Friday, the Hornets placed backup guard Bryce Drew on the injured list with an inflamed left foot.