Pistons Notes: Cunningham, Duren, Jenkins, Injuries, Robinson
With Cade Cunningham likely to miss out on postseason awards, Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said this week that he’d like to see some alterations to the current rules.
Cunningham was diagnosed with a collapsed lung this week and won’t be reevaluated for two weeks. He needs to play in five more games to reach the 65-game minimum to be eligible for most postseason awards. He had been a candidate for Most Valuable Player, as well as a surefire pick for an All-NBA team.
“There are so many different things now that you have to take into consideration that you shouldn’t have to take into consideration,” Bickerstaff said. “The guys are good enough. They deserve certain things. They play a certain way. Guys shouldn’t have to feel like they have to play hurt or injured to make something like that happen.
“I don’t have an answer for you as to what the best thing is moving forward, but I do think if you have serious injuries and you’ve played a certain way throughout the season and you’ve played a certain amount of games, a certain amount of minutes, whatever it may be, you should still be able to qualify for those awards. Again, I get the intent behind it. I just think there has to be a better way.”
Here’s more on the Pistons:
- Detroit’s other All-Star, center Jalen Duren, had a team-high 23 points and six rebounds in Friday’s 115-101 victory over the Warriors. Duren, who is averaging 19.2 points and 10.5 rebounds per contest, has led the team in scoring during their three-game winning streak. “For me, I’m just proud of my group. Proud of where I’m at now,” said Duren, who will be a restricted free agent after the season. “This is something that I’ve always known I can be. I’ve always known I can be one of the better players in this league, and I’ve still got a lot of room to grow. I don’t feel like I’m anywhere near as good as I can be. There’s still a lot of things I can get better at, but I’m proud of everybody… From where we’ve started to now, I’m proud of everybody who has been a part of it.”
- Starting in place of Cunningham, Daniss Jenkins supplied 22 points, eight assists and seven rebounds against Golden State. It’s the fourth time this season Jenkins has reached the 20-point mark. “It’s just a different challenge,” Jenkins said during a TV interview regarding the loss of Cunningham. “We get to test ourselves, how can each guy take their game to the next step to pick up for that missing piece in Cade. We know he’s a big piece – that’s our guy. So we’ve just all got to step up in different ways to pick up for his loss. That’s all we’re trying to do. It’s a challenge.” Jenkins was promoted from a two-way deal to a two-year contract last month.
- Along with Cunningham and Isaiah Stewart (left calf strain), they played the second game of a back-to-back without guards Marcus Sasser (right hip soreness) and Kevin Huerter (right shoulder contusion).
- In case you missed it, the Pistons clinched a playoff spot with their victory on Friday. Detroit was knocked out during the first round by the Knicks last season and Bickerstaff believes that experience in the postseason will pay off this spring. “I do still believe that you have to have experience,” Bickerstaff said, per Jeff Zillgitt of NBA.com. “But that experience that we had last year versus the Knicks is enough. That experience gave our guys an opportunity to understand exactly what playoff basketball looks like and how to win in the playoffs. Our guys were able to go on the road and win two playoff games in the Garden, with all the allure that comes along with that and the pressures of the moment. That says our guys have what it takes to do it and then do it again. That’s the thing that gives me such belief that we’re capable of doing that.”
- Duncan Robinson wasn’t on the roster when the Pistons won a league-low 14 games two seasons ago. He sees the franchise’s dramatic turnaround as part of a culture shift, he told Hunter Patterson of The Athletic. “Having an identity is a big piece,” Robinson said. “We know who we are, and we know what’s required night to night in order to win games. Having guys you can really rely on on a night-to-night basis. A guy like Cade, that’s your leader. (Duren) has obviously flourished into that role as well. So it’s fun, man.”
Pistons Notes: Depth, Cunningham, Jenkins, Sasser, More
Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff has used an extended rotation for much of the season, with 11 players currently on the roster averaging at least 16.8 minutes per game. As Hunter Patterson of The Athletic details, that depth will be tested in the short term, with two of the team’s most important players – Cade Cunningham (collapsed lung) and Isaiah Stewart (calf strain) – currently unavailable.
“We’re so comfortable with the depth and the guys that we have, and they’ve proven they can help us,” Bickerstaff said earlier in March. “Typically, in the past, nine is a great number (for a playoff rotation). But, s–t, we’re struggling to get away from 12. Because there are so many guys that have played for us this year that have helped us win. So, there’s going to be some situational decisions.”
In those comments to the media a couple weeks ago, Bickerstaff went on to single out Paul Reed, Marcus Sasser, and Daniss Jenkins as reserves who have made the most of opportunities to play rotation roles. As Patterson points out, all three of those three players – along with Kevin Huerter – have received DNP-CDs at times when Detroit is closer to full health, but they’ll likely be relied upon for regular minutes with Cunningham and Stewart out.
In addition to looking to help the Pistons maintain their spot atop the Eastern Conference, players like Reed, Sasser, Jenkins, and Huerter could also be making their cases for places in the team’s playoff rotation based on how they perform in the next couple weeks, Patterson adds.
Here’s more on the Pistons:
- When they confirmed today that Cunningham is dealing with a collapsed lung, the Pistons ruled out the star guard for two weeks. How much more time might he miss beyond that initial timeline? That remains to be seen, but Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press spoke on Thursday to Dr. Panagis Galiatsatos – a pulmonologist at Johns Hopkins – about what causes a collapsed lung, what the recovery process looks like, and what needs to happen before Cunningham returns. “The big thing I would make the case of is recognizing a collapsed lung is serious and what’s frustrating for an athlete is they’re going to feel good the second it re-inflates and they’re going to want to go back out there,”Galiatsatos said. “What we need to be mindful of is the lung is going to still take a few weeks to fully heal, because it is an injury because the tissue got torn. You want it to not just heal over, you want it to be fully secure.”
- Patterson, Jay King, and James L. Edwards III of The Athletic take a look at how Cunningham’s health condition will impact the Eastern Conference playoff race, with all three reporters predicting that Detroit will hang onto the No. 1 seed for the rest of the regular season — the Pistons currently have a 3.5-game lead over second-place Boston. Cunningham’s ability to return before or during the first round of the postseason could be crucial, The Athletic’s trio notes, since there are some dangerous teams near the bottom of the East’s playoff picture.
- In a separate story for The Detroit Free Press (subscription required), Sankofa looks at three areas of concern for the Pistons to shore up in the final 14 games of the regular season. In addition to outside shooting and finding the right balance between shooting and defense, one of those areas Sankofa highlights is “non-Cunningham ball-handling.” In the wake of the star guard’s diagnosis, there should be plenty of opportunities to go around for players like Jenkins, Sasser, Huerter, Ausar Thompson, and Caris LeVert.
Pistons Notes: Jenkins, Rotation, Cunningham, Thompson
Pistons guard Daniss Jenkins has been one of this season’s biggest surprises, but he’s gone through a difficult stretch since receiving a standard contract on February 8. That changed on Tuesday against Washington as he was forced into a larger role as a result of an injury to Cade Cunningham, Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press writes in a subscriber-only story.
Jenkins entered the game at the start of the second quarter and posted 15 points, seven assists and two steals in 21 minutes. With Cunningham’s return date still uncertain, Sankofa notes that Jenkins will have an opportunity to reclaim his normal role before the playoffs begin.
“That’s what life is about,” he said. “Don’t get too high, don’t get too low. It’s a part of it. I shot out of a cannon and then you hit some rough patches. It’s all good, that’s what life is about. I take it on the chin and I keep working. I don’t shy away from nothing. Stay ready so when my number is called I do what I’m supposed to do.”
Sankofa notes that injuries to Jaden Ivey, Caris LeVert and Marcus Sasser gave Jenkins a shot at regular playing time early in the season, and he responded with several huge scoring performances. He quickly used up his 50 games of eligibility as a two-way player and was promoted shortly after the trade deadline passed. An extended slump followed, but he received reassuring words from coach J.B. Bickerstaff after being benched following a March 7 loss to Brooklyn.
“He just told me just to be me because that’s what got me this position,” Jenkins said. “Try to do nothing extra, try to do nothing different other than who I am. I just look myself in the mirror every day and I just stay with it, good, bad and ugly.”
There’s more from Detroit:
- Bickerstaff has been forced to tinker with his rotation because of injuries to Cunningham and Isaiah Stewart, who’s expected to miss at least another week with a strained left calf, Sankofa adds. Sasser and Kevin Huerter have been seeing rotation minutes lately after being kept on the bench through most of February, and backup big man Paul Reed has seen an increase in playing time with Stewart unavailable. “It’s one of those things that, unfortunately, we’ve dealt with a lot this season and had to call on different guys throughout the year,” Bickerstaff said after Tuesday’s game. “Tonight was an opportunity to do that, give guys the minutes, give guys the opportunities to see what they can do. It’s extremely important trying to find the right combinations for the different situations that we might face. And we’ll continue to grow.”
- Cunningham has already been ruled out of Thursday’s rematch with Washington due to a left back contusion, per Hunter Patterson of The Athletic (Twitter link).
- Ausar Thompson was limited to four points and three assists in 23 minutes on Sunday in his return to action after spraining his right ankle, notes Coty M. Davis of The Detroit News (subscription required). “Being on a minutes restriction is hard,” Bickerstaff said. “Trying to figure out how to keep him in a rhythm, getting back to playing with the group. His effort was great — his ability to defend was great. He is just working his way back. He’ll be fine.”
Pistons Notes: Sasser, Winning Streak, Holland, Huerter
Marcus Sasser took advantage of extended playing time for his highest scoring output since New Year’s Day. The Pistons guard, who has been starting with Ausar Thompson sidelined by a right ankle sprain, scored 16 points in a 126-110 win over Memphis on Friday.
“Again, this isn’t new or a surprise. It’s just opportunity,” head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “I give Sass a ton of credit because he’s always ready when his number is called. He works to be prepared for the moment. He’s an NBA basketball player, that’s clear. It’s just about the opportunities for him, and he’s getting them now, and he takes advantage of them like he always does.
“But he’s a dogged defender, he’s another ball-handler, play-maker. Obviously, his ability to shoot the basketball. How he can space the floor for us. Again, he’s a good player whose opportunity numbers have just kind of not bounced his way. But the more exposure he gets the more opportunities he gets, and we’ll continue to give him chances.”
Sasser is signed through next season after the team exercised a $5.2MM club option on his contract for 2026/27 in October. He’ll be eligible for a rookie scale extension during the coming offseason.
Here’s more on the Pistons:
- The Pistons have won three straight after a season-worst four-game losing streak. In addition to the victory over Memphis, they also defeated the Nets and the injury-riddled Sixers this week. “It’s no secret that we went on a little run. We were losing games in the stint, but coach told us to stay together throughout all this,” reserve wing Ron Holland said. “We had a lot of success throughout the season so far. I mean, we weren’t getting big-headed or anything, but every team goes through [losing streaks] in the NBA. So, he was just telling us to stay together, to keep running the course and everything will be fine. We’re back on track now, so hopefully we can stay rolling.”
- Holland continues to struggle from deep — he’s made just 15.8 percent of his three-point tries this month — but he’s still been an offensive threat during the winning streak. He’s averaging 14.3 points over the last three games. “I love watching Ron on and off the court. Just his work ethic,” Bickerstaff said. “There are not many guys that are in the gym working as hard as Ron is working on his game, his want to get better, his commitment to this team, his willingness to sacrifice for this team. But then on court, he’s understanding where his spots come and how he can be even more impactful on both ends of the floor where his strengths lie. And then he understands the moment, too. We’ve seen our team not have the energy, or be on the downswing, and then we put Ron in the game and he comes in with that energy to be instantly impactful. And that means a lot to us.”
- Trade deadline acquisition Kevin Huerter has averaged 21 minutes over the last six games. He’s posted double-digit points in his last two outings — 12 points against the Sixers and 11 against the Grizzlies. He’ll be an unrestricted free agent after the season.
Central Notes: Portis, Giannis, Buzelis, Huerter, Strus
Appearing on the Run It Back podcast (hat tip to Real GM), Bucks forward Bobby Portis said he believes it’s an even-money proposition on whether Giannis Antetokounmpo gets dealt this summer. There were weeks of intense trade rumors surrounding Antetokounmpo heading into the deadline, and that process is likely to resume during the offseason as Milwaukee hasn’t been able to make a strong push for a play-in spot.
“Uh, I’m at a five, bro. I’m right in the middle. … For real, it’s up in the air, man,” Portis told the hosts. “Obviously, just being here, our goal just isn’t to make the play-in, right? The goal isn’t to just make the playoffs. Since I’ve been here, since 2020 during the pandemic, the goal has always been championship. So, I don’t know what that outlook is for next year. I don’t know what (general manager) Jon (Horst) and his staff are going to put together to make the roster better, make us better, so we can compete for championships next year. I don’t know that.”
Portis added that questions about Antetokounmpo’s future have been part of every summer since 2020, except for the Bucks’ championship season. He expects speculation regarding Giannis to peak heading into the draft in late June.
There’s more from the Central Division:
- Matas Buzelis is close to becoming the first Bulls player to finish with 100 blocks in a season in nearly a decade, Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times notes in a subscriber-only story. The second-year forward ranks seventh in the league with 94 rejections and brings a much-needed element to the team’s defense. ‘‘I’m really good at timing the block and knowing when guys will try and finish when they’re going up,’’ Buzelis said. ‘‘It’s something I feel like I’ve had since I started playing basketball. I just try and translate it to the NBA. Obviously, it’s a little harder, but you’ve got to realize what guys do when they’re driving, how they finish. I feel like I’ve got the timing and the verticality. Straight up at the rim, it’s hard to finish over me since I’m so tall. But it’s definitely something I have.’’
- The Pistons misfired at the trade deadline by bringing in Kevin Huerter as their major addition, contends Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports (Twitter video link). O’Connor argues that Detroit needed more shooting and a second creator on offense, but gave up Jaden Ivey for Huerter, who’s only averaging 13.6 minutes per night in eight games since the deal.
- Cavaliers wing Max Strus is moving closer to making his season debut, which could happen in the next week, Joe Vardon of The Athletic states in a story highlighting the work Strus’ foundation is doing to help children dealing with serious health issues. The 29-year-old has been recovering from foot surgery since August.
Pistons Notes: Thompson, Holland, Cunningham, Huerter
The Pistons, who hold the top seed in the Eastern Conference, lost their second straight game on Thursday at San Antonio. They also lost their best perimeter defensive player — third-year wing Ausar Thompson — to a right ankle sprain just two minutes into the contest, writes Michael C. Wright of ESPN.com.
“Ausar obviously means a lot to us,” head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “What we were able to do defensively, what he does defensively, the impact he has, obviously, you miss. We just had to figure out a way collectively to pick it up.”
Thompson has already been ruled out of Saturday’s contest vs. Brooklyn, tweets Hunter Patterson of The Athletic. The 23-year-old will be eligible for a rookie scale extension this summer.
Here’s more from Detroit:
- Second-year forward Ron Holland was also forced out of Thursday’s game after sustaining a left eye injury, the team announced (via Twitter). “He got hit in the eye and it was blurred vision. I didn’t want to put him out there, didn’t feel comfortable putting him back in the game if he couldn’t see straight out of that eye,” Bickerstaff said (Twitter link via Patterson). However, Holland should be ready to go on Saturday, as he’s not listed on tomorrow’s injury report, Patterson tweets.
- Guard Cade Cunningham (left quad contusion) is questionable to suit up against the Nets, while center Jalen Duren is probable because of low back spasms, as Patterson relays (via Twitter).
- Veteran guard Kevin Huerter showed on Thursday why the Pistons traded for him last month, writes Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press (subscriber link). Huerter had been out of the team’s rotation of late, receiving a DNP-CD in six of his last seven games heading into Thursday, but he capitalized on his opportunity with Thompson out, contributing seven points (on 3-of-4 shooting), five rebounds, two assists and a steal. He was plus-15 in 17 minutes in the 15-point loss to the Spurs. “It’s different, it’s for sure different,” Huerter said of his role. “I think I also know at this point how to be a pro, how to keep myself ready, staying in the gym. It’s my job to be there and try to learn this offense, figure out our identity on the defensive side of the ball and watch film when I can. But obviously keep myself in shape and sharp as much as I can and control the things I can control.“
Pistons Notes: Cunningham, Duren, Sasser, Huerter, Stewart, Jenkins
Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff detailed during his pregame press conference on Friday his reasons why Cade Cunningham should receive the Most Valuable Player award.
“I wish I could (state Cade’s case MVP) with a better, stronger voice…I mean, he deserves it,” Bickerstaff said. “Right now, again, if the season were to end today, the best player on the team with the best win percentage, to me, is the guy that deserves to be the MVP.
“What he does for us on both ends of the floor; he doesn’t take nights, or times, or possessions off defensively. We’ll put him on the other team’s best perimeter player, and he’ll go down on the offensive end and score his 25 points but create for his teammates. He’s second in the league in assists and makes his teammates better also. And, then the game’s on the line, you can give him the ball, and he’s one of the best clutch players we have in this league. So, I’m hard-pressed to find a better example or statement of who the MVP should be.”
Cunningham is averaging 25.4 points, a career-high 9.8 assists, 5.4 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.0 blocks per game for the East-leading Pistons, whose 44-14 record is the NBA’s best mark.
Here’s more on the Pistons:
- All-Star center Jalen Duren said he never wanted to leave the organization, even during its franchise-worst 14-win season in 2023/24. “That’s not my character. That’s not me. I’m super loyal,” Duren told Marc J. Spears of Andscape. “I hang my hat on loyalty. I was raised on loyalty. These are my brothers, man. Honestly, I don’t just say that just because we’re all on the same team. I honestly love these guys. So, in my head, looking at it, I didn’t see a bad team. I was young. I knew we had pieces. We were just missing something. Experience would be the easy thing to say. We were just missing something. We were missing a lot, actually. But for me, I just never saw it as this is not going to work. I always knew that once we figured some things out, grabbed a couple pieces, established a culture, maybe we can be something.”
- Marcus Sasser and trade deadline acquisition Kevin Huerter haven’t cracked the rotation, but Bickerstaff said there will be opportunities for both players to earn minutes next month. “We got a heavy March, right? We got a ton of games in March where everybody will get an opportunity to play,” he said. “And because of our depth, we feel confident that we can still compete at a high level with the depth that we have and get those guys some chances to play.” Sasser played 11 minutes during Friday’s overtime win against Cleveland but didn’t score.
- Isaiah Stewart, who is still serving a seven-game suspension for his involvement in a pre-All-Star break brawl with Charlotte, says he patterns his game after Hall of Famer Ben Wallace, who earned four Defensive Player of the Year awards with Detroit. “He paved the way for us undersized guys,” Stewart told Vince Goodwill of ESPN. “I’m trying to live up to that and put my name somewhere positive in this organization.”
- Daniss Jenkins, who was promoted from his two-way contract with a two-year, $8MM deal earlier this month, hit three clutch free throws after getting fouled on a three-point attempt in the closing seconds of regulation on Friday. That allowed the Pistons to steal a game against the Cavs in overtime. “He’s been mature. I hate to say that, but it’s not surprising anymore what he’s done,” Bickerstaff said. “When his number has been called, whatever the moment has been, he’s been a productive for us and effective for us.”
Bulls Notes: Simons, Ivey, Huerter, Tanking
Anfernee Simons will miss the Bulls‘ matchup against the Knicks on Sunday with a left wrist sprain, according to Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic (Twitter link). Simons left Saturday’s loss to the Pistons after just 13 minutes due to the injury.
According to head coach Billy Donovan, Simons will undergo imaging on the wrist on Monday, and it’s entirely possible that the “sprained wrist” diagnosis will change following the results of those tests (Twitter link via Lorenzi). Donovan said the Bulls don’t currently know the severity of the injury.
Prior to Saturday, Simons had played five games with the Bulls after being acquired in a deal that sent Nikola Vucevic to the Celtics. In those five games, he averaged 17.4 points, 3.6 assists, and 3.0 rebounds with a .446/.327/1.000 shooting line.
We have more from the Bulls:
- Chicago’s trade deadline was filled with moves designed to secure the best possible lottery odds this summer, but the acquisition of Jaden Ivey was one of the few forward-facing moves they made in terms of adding personnel. Ivey’s recent injury status makes that calculation more complicated, especially given his impending free agency, writes The Chicago Tribune’s Julia Poe. However, despite Ivey’s comments about his body not feeling the same following knee and leg injuries, Poe says there’s cautious optimism from the team’s coach about his ability to recapture his old form. “There’s a feeling that if he can get some more strength back then he can get back to where he was athletically,” Donovan said. “He knows that he’s not as explosive as he once was, but I don’t think that means that he can’t get back to that point. A big part of that is going to be him getting stronger.” According to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times, Ivey’s former coach, J.B. Bickerstaff, agrees with Donovan, but adds that the most important part of the process is mental. “We expected a full recovery, but the timing you never know; it’s something you can never know,” Bickerstaff said. “And then the part for him is believing and trusting in it. That happens with the injury, too, especially when you’re explosive and your athleticism is so unique. You’ve got to find that trust back in it.”
- Kevin Huerter recently spoke about the trade that sent him from the Bulls to the Pistons, Cowley writes. One thing he touched on was the lack of clarity in Chicago about whether the team would compete or move into a rebuilding phase. “We talked about it [as a team], and we just didn’t know,” Huerter said. “We were sitting at .500 most of the year. It could have gone either way. As players, you have to expect everything, but seven or eight trades, whatever it was, I don’t know if anyone expected that.” While the move to the East-leading Pistons came as a surprise, the 27-year-old shooting guard is grateful for the opportunity it has provided him. “The transition, it’s always tough in season, even coming here last year, it was tough to move everything, your whole life, in about a week,” he said. “But you’re going to a team like this, No. 1 in the East, and they just compete their ass off.”
- The Bulls are behind the eight ball when it comes to maximizing their 2026 draft lottery odds, Poe writes, noting that Chicago has the ninth-worst record in the league at 24-33 and might have a hard time dropping any further than that. Poe suggests the belated effort to tank has something in common with vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas‘ habit of not dealing players until after their value has started to decline. Still, Poe writes that the move to begun the next era of Bulls basketball is the right one, given the depth and promise of the 2026 draft class.
Pistons Notes: Cunningham, Langdon, Huerter, Ivey
Cade Cunningham‘s outstanding season is moving him into the MVP conversation, writes Vincent Goodwill of ESPN. The Pistons guard turned in his latest dominant performance with 42 points, 13 assists and eight rebounds in Thursday’s win at New York, as Detroit solidified its hold on the top spot in the East and improved its league-best record to 41-13.
“It comes from doing the things I said, what I needed to do to be in that conversation,” Cunningham said. “Now that we’re getting closer, there’s more [talk] like ‘What is your case? You should speak on it.’ I don’t really care to speak on it. I want the people that vote on it to be smart enough to look at the game for themselves.”
However, he added, “I think I am [MVP]. And if you don’t agree with me, that’s your opinion.“
Cunningham ranks 12th in the league’s scoring race at 25.7 PPG and second in assists with 9.7 per game. He’s been the driving force on a team that has shattered all expectations coming into this season, and his competitive spirit has affected his teammates.
“He’s a winner, man. He really is. Attitude, leadership, every day, the guy is special,” Tobias Harris said. “I think more than anything, he wants championships, and that’s a difference. There’s guys who want to win MVP and guys who want to win championships.”
There’s more on the Pistons:
- In an interview with Chris Mannix of SI, owner Tom Gores gives credit to president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon for turning around a franchise that won just 14 games two years ago. “I probably saw 20 different people, a lot of known names. And Trajan was not necessarily one of the known names,” Gores said of the hiring process. “He had a good reputation. But I saw a real CEO and an executive in him. … His execution skills, like a CEO, are excellent, his strategy and analytic skills, excellent. He’s very execution oriented. And to me, I’ve never gotten anywhere in my life just with vision. We have to execute and he’s very execution oriented, and of course has a vision.”
- Kevin Huerter is only averaging 12 minutes per night in four appearances since being acquired from Chicago at the deadline. Speaking to reporters before Saturday’s game, coach J.B. Bickerstaff said he expects Huerter to eventually move into a larger role, per Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter link). “You see him and he’s got the reputation as a shooter, but I watch him as a play-maker, a ball-handler … his understanding of the game as a whole,” Bickerstaff said.
- Bickerstaff also commented on the decision to part with Jaden Ivey, who was getting limited playing time while working his way back after fracturing his left leg last season, Sankofa adds (Twitter link). “We expected a full recovery but the timing we didn’t know, which is something you can’t ever know,” Bickerstaff said. “And then the part of it for him, believing it and trusting it. That happens with injury too, especially when you’re that explosive and your athleticism is so unique.”
Pistons Notes: Jenkins, Trade Deadline, Buyout Market, Huerter
Pistons president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon stated on Friday that the team plans to sign two-way guard Daniss Jenkins to a standard contract prior to their road game against the Hornets on Monday. Jenkins reached his NBA two-way eligibility limit on Friday and displayed why the Pistons want him on the 15-man roster. He scored a team-high 18 points as the Eastern Conference-leading Pistons blew out the second-place Knicks.
Jenkins was “saved” for that matchup with New York after sitting out Thursday’s loss to the Wizards.
“I was really frustrated yesterday because I didn’t get to play,” Jenkins told Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press. “I hate missing games. I just wanted to come out and impact the game. We forgot about it, we flushed that game yesterday, but it’s still on my mind. It was definitely not a game that we should have lost. I just wanted to come out and impact the game like I always do. Just change the energy. My teammates played really well tonight. We all played a really good game and I just had to come in and do my job.”
Jenkins’ emergence made former lottery pick Jaden Ivey, who was dealt to Chicago, expendable. Jenkins is motivated by the fact he entered the league as an undrafted player.
“If I’m being honest, and everybody knows I’m a very humble guy, but in college, most of these dudes that got drafted, what was the difference between me and them?” he said. “What? You tell me, what was the difference? For me, going undrafted is insanity to me, literally insanity, and that burns inside of me every single day.”
Here’s more on the Pistons:
- Other than acquiring reserve guard Kevin Huerter in the Ivey deal, the Pistons took a “stay the course” approach to the trade deadline. “There were some things, whether it was the other team pulling out or us just saying, now’s not the right time for that,” Langdon said, per Vince Goodwill of ESPN. “There were some things that I wouldn’t say, got close, that we thought about but didn’t execute.” Langdon is eager to see how his team responds in the postseason as likely the top East seed. “What are we going to do in the postseason? What’s our rotation, who are the guys that step up in crunch time,” Langdon said. “The hope is we give ourselves a chance to play meaningful basketball in the postseason and that’ll allow us to assess what this team is and who we are going forward.”
- Langdon wouldn’t rule out picking up a player from the buyout market if it’s a good fit, Hunter Patterson of The Athletic tweets. “We’ll always look at opportunities to get better,” he said. “We’ll definitely explore it, see who becomes available and if some of those players fit for us. We’ll keep looking to see if can get better if possible.”
- Huerter scored eight points in eight minutes against the Knicks. There’s no certainty he’ll be in the rotation but his outside shooting could prove valuable, Patterson writes. “He’s a complete basketball player,” coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “He’s versatile in the things that he can do. Obviously, (he has) the ability to make shots. But he has the ability to make plays, he can play the pick-and-roll. He’s an elite cutter, understanding spacing. Just his ability to process the game as a whole. As a person he’s going to fit right in. He’s a great dude who understands the situation he’s coming into and what these guys have already accomplished. He’s not here to rock the boat by any means. He’s here to help and contribute, and we feel like his skill set can do that.”
- Huerter grew up as a fan of the Pistons, according to Sankofa. “Back when you’re growing up as a kid, whatever team is on TV are the ones you gravitate towards,” he said. “One of the first basketballs that I had was a Detroit Pistons basketball. Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, Ben Wallace, Rasheed Wallace, that whole team was one of my favorite teams. … I always liked the Pistons.”