Tim Povtak of the Orlando Sentinel reports: Grant Hill was wearing a protective boot on his troublesome left foot Wednesday, but he predicted his return to the Orlando Magic's lineup would come no later than Monday after sitting out the next two games as a precaution.

Hill underwent more testing Wednesday, and a bone scan confirmed the previous findings that the soreness in his left ankle is not related to the surgically repaired fracture that caused him to miss all but four games last season.

After meeting Tuesday in Baltimore with Dr. Mark Myerson, who did the second surgery on Hill's ankle in January, and Dr. Joe Billings, the Magic's team physician, Hill said his return will come quickly. "My gut feeling, after talking to everyone, is that the soreness is just the joint again getting used to playing an NBA season," Hill said. "It just needs a little rest. This is nothing major."

Hill left Monday's loss to Detroit limping midway through the fourth quarter, then flew to Baltimore to be examined by Myerson, who told him that past bone spurs at the front of his ankle had become inflamed by a sprained ankle.

"Those bone spurs, that's nothing new, and that's not the problem," Hill said. "He was optimistic, which made me feel optimistic about everything. I could play as early as Saturday [against the Washington Wizards], maybe, but it's more likely Monday [against the Memphis Grizzlies]. Let's just see how it responds. Going up there just gave me a little piece of mind. We're all just being a little cautious."