Beno Udrih season in review and grade

Beno Udrih was a late addition to the Detroit Pistons roster, not joining the team until after the end of the preseason. We review his season here.

Beno Udrih was a savior to the Detroit Pistons bench after Lorenzo Brown and Ray McCallum battled to an unimpressive preseason stalemate in the quest for backup/third point guard. McCallum won the role, largely because of his experience edge, but Stan Van Gundy wasn’t satisfied with that situation and pounced when the Miami Heat waived Beno Udrih in late October.

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The Pistons relied on their third point guard much more than most teams thanks to Reggie Jackson missing the first 21 games of the season. Udrih played behind Ish Smith, and had a solid case for taking Smith’s spot in the rotation over much of that stretch.

Udrih shot 45.9 percent from the floor and 36.4 percent from three over the season’s first 21 games, averaging seven points and 3.4 assists in 17.5 minutes per appearance. He had the best net rating on the team at +5.4 and the best on-court defensive rating at 97.9 points per 100 possessions over the course of the season.

On the year, he shot 46.7 percent and hit 34.4 percent of his threes.

Udrih injured his knee in the third-to-last game of the season and is expected to be unable to participate in basketball activity for another month or so. While this is the time of year that non-playoff teams are getting their vacations in, it’s not a set-back that will suit Udrih well. He’ll turn 35 in July and will be a free agent, so his future with the Pistons looks murky at best.

Related Story: What can the Pistons do to have a successful offseason?

Grade: B-