Paul Gasol Kobe Bryant
Pau Gasol has been to three NBA Finals with Kobe Bryant and the Lakers. Reuters

It’s been five weeks since Pau Gasol last suited up for the Los Angeles Lakers, but it might not be that much longer before he takes the court again.

The veteran is getting closer to making his return from a foot injury that has kept him out since Feb. 5. Gasol suffered a torn plantar fascia in his right foot against the Brooklyn Nets.

There isn’t much time left in the season, but Gasol should be ready to help the Lakers make their final push towards the playoffs. The big man was cleared to begin running on Monday, and was working with assistant coach Darvin Ham after shootaround on Tuesday.

Last Thursday, Gasol announced that he used the Lakers’ Alter-G anti-gravity treadmill. The 32-year-old set the machine to run at 65 percent of his body weight and claimed that he didn’t feel much discomfort, calling it “very encouraging.”

It still might be two weeks before Gasol can get in a game. He will need some time performing basketball activities before head coach Mike D’Antoni is ready to play him.

In Gasol’s absence, Los Angeles has actually performed better than they have all season. Since the big man went down, L.A. has won 10-of-15 contests. That wasn’t the case earlier in year when Gasol missed games with knee tendonitis. The team went 3-5 during that eight-game stretch.

L.A. is currently tied with the Utah Jazz for the eighth seed in the Western Conference.