Toe Healing Process Painful for O’Neal

Shaquille O’Neal’s recovery will not be without complication.

Five weeks after surgery to ease pain and restore flexibility in his right big toe, O’Neal said Tuesday that he was experiencing discomfort in the toe.

Though the pain is not in the specific area of the surgery and so far hasn’t kept him from his rehabilitation schedule, O’Neal left no doubt as to how it felt.

“It’s killing me,” he said at the Lakers’ practice facility in El Segundo.

Trainer Gary Vitti said O’Neal was suffering from sesamoiditis, or inflammation of the tendons on the underside of the toe, probably brought on by the new flexibility provided by the surgery. Vitti also said that the condition was a fairly normal part of the healing process.

Neither O’Neal nor Vitti suggested that the pain, which apparently set in at least a week ago, constituted a major setback. Indeed, O’Neal said, he trotted on a Precor machine, which allows him to run without excessive pounding, while the Lakers practiced.

O’Neal said he would be examined today by Dr. Robert Mohr, who performed the Sept. 11 procedure at UCLA Medical Center. Until now, O’Neal’s recovery had been uneventful.

The Lakers open their season Oct. 29, 13 days from today, though that has never been a target date for O’Neal.

“I’m not trying to get back by opening night,” O’Neal said. “I’ll get back when the time is right.”

Coach Phil Jackson said he was “not nervous at all” about O’Neal, though he then suggested O’Neal hadn’t followed the instructions of his rehabilitation to the letter.

“He’s been out here doing some things kind of interesting,” Jackson said. “But there’s nothing he can hurt.... If he quits fooling around with it, he’ll be fine.”

Jackson declined to elaborate.

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Rick Fox, who has a strained lower back, may play Thursday night in an exhibition against Golden State at the Arrowhead Pond.

Forward Mark Madsen, who began last season on the injured list recuperating from wrist surgery, might again carry an injury into the regular season.

He continues to receive treatment on his strained left hamstring, but remains questionable to play in another exhibition game.

“Mark is still a ways away,” Jackson said.

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A pitcher in high school who still watches a lot of National League baseball -- “Real baseball,” he said -- Jackson has not been swept away by the Angels’ run to the World Series, but he appreciates the methods of Manager Mike Scioscia.

“I admire the way he’s talked to his team about focus,” Jackson said.