Seattle SuperSonics guard Desmond Mason didn't seem too happy about sitting out of the 87-85 loss to Miami on Tuesday, but he said he understood coach Nate McMillan's decision to play it cautiously concerning Mason's sore hamstring.

"I thought I was going today," Mason said. "But Coach thought otherwise. For the long run, I understand. It's not like I'm mad. I understand what he is thinking, but I wanted to play. I think everybody is like that."

Mason said he injured the hamstring toward the end of the second quarter against the Orlando Magic on Monday night.

"It just started hurting," Mason said. "When I started running a little bit, it just started tweaking. It felt like it got worse as the game went on."

Mason said he expects to play against the New Jersey Nets on Thursday.