Carlos Boozer is finally on the road to recovery.

After the two-time All-Star underwent successful arthroscopic surgery on his ailing left knee, the team announced on Saturday that everything went according to plan. He will go through four weeks of rehabilitation and the team will proceed with a timetable for his return from there.

Boozer first suffered a strained left quadriceps tendon and a bone bruise on the knee in a November 19 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. The veteran power forward has since missed 24 straight games as the injury nagged.

It was finally decided last week - after his third MRI - that he would go under the knife. Dr. Richard Ferkel performed the operation on Friday in Los Angeles.

Loose cartilage around his knee joint was removed and the knee was cleaned up. It was determined that no more serious procedures will be necessary.

"I had a successful surgery and the loose bodies that were floating around and causing my pain were removed," Boozer said. "My knee is now on its way to recovering and getting completely healthy so that I can return to help my team."

The team has struggled to find consistency in Boozer's absence. The Jazz have not won or lost more than two consecutive games since mid-November without their leading scorer. Backup Paul Millsap has filled in more than admirably in the starting role, registering a league-high 19 consecutive double-doubles.

But Boozer's absence has hurt Utah's depth and taken away one of its key dimensions on offense. Boozer is a more skilled offensive player and more capable of creating his own shot. He has averaged about 21 points per game in each of the last two seasons and was leading the club at 20.5 points and 11.7 boards this campaign before going down.

The Jazz (21-15) have won the first two games of their four-game homestand but have dates looming with the likes of the Rockets, Cavaliers, Trail Blazers, Nuggets, Spurs and Lakers over the next few weeks in Boozer's continued absence. When the star forward can return to the floor as Utah makes its playoff push remains to be seen.

"It just depends on his rehab," Jazz general manager Kevin O'Connor told The Deseret News. "Could it be four weeks? Yeah. Could it be six weeks? Yeah. Could it be three-and-a-half or four-and-a-half weeks? Yeah. When he can go full speed and not run with a limp - that's when he can play."