Ricky Davis update

Clippers guard Ricky Davis returned to the lineup Wednesday night against the Atlanta Hawks after missing the last 24 games: 19 due to knee tendinitis and five due to a league-imposed suspension for violating the NBA drug policy.

Davis said he had apologized privately to the team and felt badly for “letting the guys down” due to his drug policy violation. He also indicated that he wasn’t surprised when learning he’d be suspended back on December 29.

“I kind of knew,” he said. “I wasn’t really surprised.”

When asked if he’d tested positive for a banned substance or merely failed to comply with the league’s drug program (either by missing a test or some other violation) Davis indicated that he’d tested positive but added, “No steroids.”

“It’s behind me,” he said. “We’re just going to keep going from here. …It’s tough, just leaving the team out there like that, letting the guys down. I talked to the guys though. It’s behind us.”

As for his sore left knee, Davis said that he felt about “90 percent” but that the debilitating pain he’d felt before was gone.

Davis last played on November 22. He was averaging just 4.3 points and shooting just 27 percent from the field when he was forced to shut it down and allow his injured knee to heal.