Marcus Camby took the first step toward returning to his big season.

The Denver Nuggets announced Thursday that Camby underwent successful surgery to insert pins into his fractured right pinky. He still is sidelined indefinitely.

Camby, who originally sprained the finger on December 14, suffered the break in Monday's game against Golden State. He played six minutes in Tuesday's loss to Philadelphia.  

Another in a long line of injuries, the latest setback could not come at a worse time for Camby, who is shooting better than 50 percent from the floor while averaging 16.2 points and 10.2 rebounds in 25 games.

In his ninth season, Camby never has played more than 72 games in a campaign. He was limited to 66 games in 2004-05.