Bynum apparently got a lot better in one day

Uh, nevermind.

The Andrew Bynum injury situation took an unusual turn Wednesday when Lakers Coach Phil Jackson stepped back from his Tuesday night decree that the 20-year-old center wouldn’t return from a knee injury until the playoffs.

Bynum could now return two weeks from Sunday, Jackson said, which would give him up to six games with the Lakers before playoffs.

“I threw that out there [Tuesday] to kind of take everything off the table,” Jackson said. “We’re [now] saying it was three weeks as of [last] Sunday. It would give him a week -- four games, three games.”

Or more.

The team initially said Bynum would miss at least eight weeks, although Jackson said Wednesday that “12 weeks was kind of like that outside parameter.”

That mark would be April 6. The Lakers play at Sacramento that night. They have five more regular-season games after that.

The Lakers will take a healthy Bynum as soon as they can, what with the frenetic Western Conference standings. The Lakers (46-21) now find themselves tied for first with New Orleans after the Hornets dealt Houston (46-22) a second consecutive defeat.

Still, Jackson cautioned that Bynum would need time to get in shape and catch up to the speed of the game after being out since mid-January.

“The reality is if he comes back and he plays the Sunday game and the Tuesday game before the season’s over, great. It’s still not going to get our rotation [settled],” he said. “It’s going to be an exercise in kind of getting him back on the court.”

Jackson seemed upbeat about another injury, saying Pau Gasol’s sprained left ankle was healing quickly.

“We’re really pleased,” Jackson said. “He’s come around and he was actually on the court [Wednesday] shooting jumpers a little bit.”

Gasol will not play tonight against Utah or Friday against Seattle. Jackson was vague when asked if Gasol would play Sunday or Monday in back-to-back games against Golden State.

“I want him to come back and do it the right way,” Jackson said.

Gasol, averaging 18.8 points and 7.9 rebounds with the Lakers, has missed two games because of his ankle.

The Lakers have many memories from their last trip to Utah, none of which they particularly cherish.

The Jazz ran up, down, over and through them in a 120-96 victory in November. And that was without two starters -- Carlos Boozer and Mehmet Okur.

Derek Fisher was booed in his first game against the team that employed him last season, and Deron Williams ripped through the Lakers for a career-high 35 points.

“One of my coaches said we were soft as Dairy Queen ice cream,” Jackson said at the time.

The Lakers aren’t alone in their struggles at Energy Solutions Arena. Utah (45-24) has the best home record in the league, 29-3, and has won 19 consecutive home games.

But a victory tonight would give the Lakers a commendable 2-2 record on their four-game trip against some of the best in the West. Momentum is certainly with them after a rousing 102-100 victory Tuesday over Dallas.

“I’m just happy we stopped that [losing] streak,” Vladimir Radmanovic said. “Now we can go into Utah and play a little looser.”

Fisher acknowledged being taken aback by the boos that followed whenever he touched the ball in the Lakers’ last game here.

Jazz fans remembered Fisher more for asking out of his contract than securing an emotional playoff victory for the Jazz last season.

“I got caught off guard,” said Fisher, who had three points on one-for-eight shooting.

Fisher wanted to move to a city where he could get top-notch medical care for his young daughter, who had a rare form of eye cancer. The Jazz let Fisher leave, and he signed a three-year deal with the Lakers.

Will he be booed again tonight?

“I don’t know if it was all gotten out the first time around -- all right, we got him, we pranked him, we got him good -- or if there’s still feelings that they’ll want to express,” Fisher said. “I think initially when I came back that first time, there was a sting, the surprise and the disappointment of the situation. But looking back at it, and even the way I feel now, there isn’t. I feel comfortable with who I am and the decision that was made and what’s taken place with my family and where we stand there.”

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TONIGHT

at Utah, 7:30 PDT, TNT

Site -- Energy Solutions Arena.

Radio -- 570, 1330.

Records -- Lakers 46-21; Jazz 45-24.

Record vs. Jazz -- 2-1.

Update -- Utah has won eight of its last 10 games, including a 96-79 victory Monday over Toronto.

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mike.bresnahan@latimes.com