The Detroit Pistons are already on an 11-game losing streak and then last night got the news that leading scorer Jerami Grant is out indefinitely with torn thumb ligaments.
Things just went from bad to worse for the Detroit Pistons, who are already the league’s worst team:
Detroit Pistons forward Jerami Grant has suffered torn ligaments in his right thumb and will be out indefinitely, sources tell me and @JLEdwardsIII. Grant is averaging 20.1 points and 4.8 rebounds this season.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 12, 2021
Not only do the Pistons lose their best overall player but also their best potential trade piece, as rumors had already started to circulate that the Pistons would look to trade Grant before the deadline.
The Pistons were already thin on NBA talent and now coach Dwane Casey will have to try to piece together a depth chart without the guy who leads the team in minutes.
Coach Casey is certainly earning his paycheck this season. There has been some chatter about Casey being fired, but to be honest, there is not a coach in the history of the NBA who could win with this roster.
So what will the Pistons depth chart look like without Jerami Grant? There are a couple of options.
Pistons depth chart: Going big without Jerami Grant
This would not be my first choice, but I have a feeling this is the starting lineup and backups we’ll see for at least a few games:
- Killian Hayes/Cory Joseph
- Cade Cunningham/Frank Jackson
- Saddiq Bey/Hamidou Diallo
- Trey Lyles/Josh Jackson
- Isaiah Stewart /Luka Garza
The Pistons would love to replace Jerami Grant with another NBA power forward and Trey Lyles is the closest thing they have. The Detroit bench has been a disaster this season, but at least Lyles is an adult I guess.
Josh Jackson could be the beneficiary of more minutes as well, which means this team is going to struggle even more to score points, which almost seems impossible considering they still don’t average 100 points per game.
That’s why I’d prefer if Dwane Casey got a little more creative.