Both Tobias Harris and Kevin Huerter are listed as questionable for the Detroit Pistons in tonight's pivotal game six against the Magic.
Huerter missed the last game and spent the night in street clothes, while Harris twisted his ankle during a huge performance in game five. Harris put on a gutsy display, staying in the game even though he was limping around and continuing to make an impact.
We've talked about Harris' brutal 3-point shooting, but he's been very good otherwise, averaging 20 points per game in the series and providing a secondary scoring option that no one else has. It would be a devastating blow for the Pistons to lose him and might send coach JB Bickerstaff in some wonky directions.
Detroit Pistons starting lineup: Big, small or somewhere in between?
I have to believe that Tobias Harris will suit up and play tonight unless he absolutely can't. He doesn't want to waste opportunities in the playoffs at his age and he knows his team needs him.
But if he can't go, coach Bickerstaff has three options, which are to go small, big or somewhere in between.
He could throw Daniss Jenkins into the starting five, which would probably be my choice. This would push everyone down and make the Pistons small, but it would add more ball handling and take some pressure off Cade.
As bad as he's been shooting the ball, Jenkins has taken care of it, and has played much better as a starter this season, so maybe this is his chance to put his mark on the series.
The Pistons could go big and put Isaiah Stewart into the starting five as the power forward. This has some appeal, as he's probably their best option to defend Paolo Banchero and it would help the Pistons establish themselves on the boards, especially Franz Wagner is still out.
The Magic have given the Pistons problems in the paint all series on both ends, so adding Beef Stew in there with Duren could work. But Detroit's spacing and ball handling are bad enough as it is, and there is higher potential for these two to get into foul trouble.
It would also push Paul Reed into the rotation and coach Bickerstaff may not be ready for that chaos.
The final option is to go medium with either Javonte Green or Caris LeVert. Green has been the more effective and impactful player in this series, so I hope it's him if it comes down to this choice. The Pistons could use a huge X-Factor game from LeVert but there is no sign that it's coming.
Hopefully, Harris will be fine and this won't be an issue, but if he's out, JB will be forced into some tough decisions with the season on the line.
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