The Detroit Pistons have had disastrous injury luck so far, but that hasn’t slowed them down, as they are off to a 12-2 start and in the midst of a 10-game winning streak.
The most impressive part is that they’ve done all of it without Jaden Ivey, most of it without Tobias Harris, and most recently, without their top three players in Cade Cunningham, Ausar Thompson and Jalen Duren.
Duren came back in a big way last night, but Cunningham and Thompson will likely be out for at least one more game.
I hate to rain on the Pistons’ parade, but most of this winning streak has come against inferior opponents. That's not their fault, and the Pistons are taking care of business against these bad teams and doing it with their backups.
But Detroit will soon be tested and have a chance to prove that this isn’t a fluke.
Detroit Pistons schedule will test their depleted rotation
The Pistons will travel to Atlanta tonight to face the Hawks on the second game of a back-to-back, which will be one of their first real tests.
The Hawks are currently tied for 3rd place in the Eastern Conference with a 9-5 record and are riding a five-game winning streak of their own, so something will have to give tonight in Atlanta.
Like the Pistons, the Hawks have been doing it without a key player in Trae Young, who is out for at least a month.
The Hawks also have Zaccharie Risacher, Kristaps Porzingis and Onyeka Okongwu listed as questionable, so we could see a battle of the backups tonight, as both teams will likely be missing several rotation players and starters.
The Pistons then travel to Milwaukee to face the Bucks, a team that has owned them for over a decade. Giannis Antetokounmpo, a certified Pistons killer, is currently listed as day-to-day with a groin injury, but even if he is out, beating the Bucks on the road won’t be easy.
Indiana and Boston are next on the road trip, two teams that are not playing well right now, but they are still road games, which are never easy.
The Pistons have gotten somewhat lucky this season in that their schedule lined up favorably with all of the injuries they’ve had, but that won’t last forever, so they have to get these guys back as soon as possible.
Duren’s return was a good start, but the Pistons will have to continue to get production from the backups as they wait for the calvary to return them to full strength.
If they can notch a few victories on the road, especially shorthanded, it will continue to prove that this team is for real and will be one to reckon with when they are at full strength and the schedule starts to get really difficult.