Amar'e Stoudemire (knee) will play in Thursday afternoon's game against the Bucks, Sports Illustrated reports.

Stoudemire (knee) will play in Thursday afternoon's game against the Bucks, Sports Illustrated reports.

Analysis:

Barring a setback in shootaround, Stoudemire, who was considered questionable all week, will return to the court after missing the last nine games with a nagging knee issue. The veteran sat out New York's last matchup against Milwaukee but put up 14 points, five rebounds and four assists in 24 minutes when the teams first met back on Nov. 18.