Player introductions at the final Citizens Bank Summer Caravan stop produced an awkward moment.

Walter McCarty and Raef LaFrentz were the featured guests for the free basketball clinic at the Cambridge Family YMCA late last week. McCarty’s presence yielded chants of “Walter, Walter” from the crowd of 125 kids. LaFrentz left the young fans wondering, “Who is he?”

The projected starting power forward for the Celtics will have to wait for instant recognition. He hopes that wait will not last as long as his rehab from right knee surgery.

LaFrentz, a former All-American at Kansas University, has spent more time recovering (seven months and counting) than he has in a Boston uniform (less than two months). The kids at the caravan stop looked at LaFrentz’s 6-foot-11-inch frame and took it as an article of faith that he played for the Celtics.

His 17-game stint last season produced unremarkable averages of 7.8 points and 4.6 rebounds in 19.3 minutes per game. By the end of his ill-fated introduction to Boston basketball, LaFrentz did not even have enough lift in his right leg to hit open jump shots.

When LaFrentz returns to the court for training camp in October, it will be, by his own estimation, the first time in 21/2 years he has played on a strong and healthy right leg. But he still feels pain in it, and that may remain for years.

“Had I waited until the end of the season to have surgery, struggled through last season, there’s no way I would have made it back by October,” said LaFrentz, who underwent surgery last December.

LaFrentz has spent a lot of time working alone these last few months, or at least without teammates. After healing from surgery, he started the first portion of his rehab, the strengthening phase, Feb. 1. LaFrentz lifted weights to rebuild muscles that had atrophied, not only because of the surgery but because he had essentially played one-legged for so long.

At the beginning of July, he introduced “aggressive conditioning” into his routine, which involved more impact-related activities, basketball movement on the court, and treadmill sprints.

After Labor Day, LaFrentz will join his teammates for pickup games, putting his knee to the final test. He does not really know how it will respond to the rigors of an 82-game season.

“The pain is still there, but I’m not as worried about it because the strength is there,” LaFrentz said.

Celtics coach Doc Rivers speaks of LaFrentz with enthusiasm, going so far as to say he has returned to the form that made him a rebounding and shot-blocking force a few years ago.

LaFrentz is more pragmatic in his assessments. Returning from a torn left ACL in 1999 taught him what it takes to come back from major knee surgery.

“Since the point the trade was made and since I had surgery,” LaFrentz said, “I’ve been working hard to try and get to where I can benefit the team.”