The Detroit Pistons updated Reggie Jackson’s medical status, saying he will be re-evaluated in two weeks. But it will be longer before he’s at full health.
The Detroit Pistons have missed Reggie Jackson‘s presence this season, and he’s the missing piece to some of Detroit’s struggles, but they’ll miss him for at least two more weeks.
The Pistons announced that Jackson “showed positive progress towards his recovery” after seeing a doctor Monday to check on a stress reaction in his lower back. The team announced he will continue rehabilitation and will be re-evaluated in two weeks.
Jackson, 29, played 36 minutes in the first two games of the season and has been sidelined since. Detroit needs him healthy to provide depth and experience in the backcourt.
When Jackson has been healthy, the Pistons have made the playoffs. Twice in the last four seasons Detroit has made the postseason, both resulting in first-round sweeps, and Jackson played 79 games in 2014-15 and a career-high 82 games last season.
The road to recovery for Jackson is a tricky timeline. Back injuries aren’t easy to tame and could flare up at any time so the Pistons need to be careful and ease Jackson back. So while he will be re-evaluated in two weeks, it may be more than a month before he can completely return and full speed and endurance on a nightly basis.
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Take Blake Griffin, for instance, who missed the first 10 games of the season with a knee injury he suffered in preseason. In the two back-to-backs since his return, Griffin has sat out the second game. The third back-to-back since his return begins Tuesday and Cleveland, so it will be interesting to see if he plays Wednesday against the Bucks.
A similar load management would be in line for Jackson when dealing with back-to-backs. But a minutes limit could, and probably should, also be in store.
Derrick Rose is getting acclimated to his new teammates and the offense is beginning to turn a corner, despite Jackson remaining out. Bruce Brown is improving at the point guard position and can give Detroit significant minutes at the position to nurse Jackson back in to the rotation.
Detroit is in a good spot to allow Jackson to heal. The next step is to get him back on the court and getting him up to game speed and a solid workload.
It’s encouraging that he is progressing and will be re-evaluated in two weeks but the Pistons desperately need him to make a full recovery and get up to game speed but they may not be for another month, at least.