As the Detroit Pistons start training camp today, there are plenty of questions about who will be in the starting lineup and rotation to start the season.
These questions got even more complicated after the trade for Bojan Bogdanovic, as putting him in the starting lineup means that someone else is headed to the bench.
But the Pistons released some injury updates yesterday which should make things easier for Dwane Casey, at least in the beginning, as there is a trio of players who are fighting for minutes and roles who may not be available to start the season.
Some Pistons injury updates —
— Offseason O (@omarisankofa) September 26, 2022
Alec Burks is rehabbing a navicular fracture and will be reevaluated in three weeks. Team says he’ll miss the start of camp.
Kevin Knox (right gastroc strain) and Nerlens Noel (reconditioning/plantar faciitis) will have limited camp participation.
Here is what each of these injuries means for the Pistons’ rotation early in the season.
Detroit Pistons: Alec Burks, Jaden Ivey and Cory Joseph
If Alec Burks is going to be “reevaluated” in three weeks, then he is at risk of missing the beginning of the season, which will definitely affect the Pistons’ rotation.
It’s likely that Burks was going to come off the bench anyway, but him being out to start the season almost certainly means that we’ll see rookie Jaden Ivey as the starting two guard.
Even if Burks was going to come off the bench, he was likely to at least split minutes with the rookie, and now Ivey will probably be getting plenty of run to start the season as the primary guy.
The question is who is going to replace Burks’ minutes off the bench. The most-likely candidate is Cory Joseph, who is coming off his best season as a shooter and can play off the ball next to Killian Hayes.
We could also see Hamidou Diallo in this role at times and I am sure coach Casey will be experimenting with different lineups and combinations as he waits for the veteran sharpshooter to return.
Detroit Pistons rotation: Early look at Jalen Duren?
While it seems like Burks will almost certainly miss some of the beginning of the regular season, the injuries to Kevin Knox and Nerlens Noel may just limit them in camp and not affect the rotation.
But if either of them has to miss time, it would clear up some questions at the back end of the rotation and about the status of Jalen Duren to start the season.
Knox will likely be battling for rotation minutes with guys like Isaiah Livers and Hamidou Diallo, so him being out makes that decision a little easier.
Depending on how coach Casey wants to use his bigs, Noel being out could make rookie Jalen Duren the de facto backup center or at least the third guy coming off the bench. There has been speculation that Duren would start the season out of the rotation, but if Noel is out, we are almost guaranteed to see him get some run early on.
I am sure Dwane Casey would prefer not to thrust his rookies into big minutes right away, but some early injuries to the veterans may force his hand.