Despite nursing a sprained rotator cuff on his right shoulder, Dwight Howard is expected to play when the Lakers host the Denver Nuggets tonight at Staples Center.

Howard didn’t practice on Saturday, though most of it involved a film session, walk through and shooting drills. Howard still participated in the walk through.

Nonetheless, Howard said after Saturday’s practice that he had trouble dressing himself because the pain in his shoulder worsened after injuring on a play that involved Clippers forward Caron Butler fouling him in the third quarter of the Lakers’ loss Friday to the Clippers. Howard stayed in the game, but has needed ice and electronic stimulation to heal the shoulder.

Howard, has averaged 17.4 points and 12 rebounds in his first season with the team and has lacked consistent explosiveness partly because of his eight-month old back surgery.

The Lakers have a toughs stretch this week against all playoff caliber teams, including a back-to-back set of games against Houston and San Antonio on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Lakers then have a home game Friday against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

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Follow L.A. Daily News Lakers beat writer Mark Medina on Twitter. E-mail him at mark.medina@dailynews.com