Video of injured Washington Mystics star Elena Delle Donne practicing with the team provided hope to fans as she nears a return to the court.

Delle Donne participated in a 5-on-5 team drill on Thursday, per Kareem Copeland of The Washington Post. She had been ramping up her efforts, although with practice players. Thursday's run marked the most extensive work she has gotten with her teammates since getting hurt.

The two-time WNBA MVP left the Mystics' game on July 9th after turning her ankle. Delle Donne had already missed the previous two games after spraining the same ankle.

Injuries have been an unfortunate trend for Elena Delle Donne recently. She has seen the past three seasons marred by back injuries, but was finally healthy and back playing at an MVP level. Delle Donne was even named as an All-Star reserve this season. But she was replaced by Atlanta Dream guard Rhyne Howard after suffering the ankle injury.

In addition to physical health, Delle Donne touched on the mental aspects she's dealing with as she nears a return. In particular, she mentioned being “very aware” of feet and bodies surrounding her as she worked on rebounding, and needed to get into more of an “attack mode.”

The last step for Delle Donne before she can return is making sure she can handle the ramped-up workload. Once she is confident her next-day recovery is where it needs to be, Elena Delle Donne will rejoin the Mystics, who have been feeling her absence. The team has lost two straight and is 3-7 in its last ten games.