One of the things fans of the Detroit Pistons were most looking forward to was the return of Jaden Ivey this season after he missed all but 30 games last year, but that was put on hold when a preseason injury set him back.
The Pistons have not only gotten on without him but thrived in his absence, as they are sitting atop the Eastern Conference and enjoying a 10-game win streak that is the longest in nearly 20 years.
Given that they are doing all of this with backups because of copious injuries, people have started to notice and the ceiling for what the Pistons can be this season has been raised considerably.
What’s even more exciting is that all of these guys will be back at some point, and the Pistons’ backups are getting valuable reps that will serve them well later in the season.
Ivey was hurt in the middle of October, and we were given a four-week timeline for his re-evaluation, which has already passed, but there has been some positive news that has offset some of the concern.
Jaden Ivey injury update: He’s shooting, which is good
The promising news is that Ivey was spotted in a recent shootaround with the Pistons and has been cleared for on-court activities, according to beat reporter Omari Sankofa II.
It was good to see Ivey out there with his teammates, and he appeared to be moving well, but that’s pretty much where the good news ends.
You can’t trust the Detroit Pistons when it comes to injuries
The bad news is that there is still no timetable for his return, and the team has not even made an official announcement about the re-evaluation that was supposed to have happened by now.
That could mean nothing, or it could mean that the next update we are going to get is “Jaden Ivey will be evaluated in two weeks,” as the team has a long history of injury information close to the vest.
That doesn’t mean they are lying about Ivey, nor that he’s had a setback, but the fact that they haven’t made an official announcement or given a timeline for his return is concerning.
The Pistons want as much time as possible to see if Ivey can be the second scoring option next to Cade Cunningham, though he may have been bumped to third or even fourth the way Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson have played.
The Pistons also have the emergence of Daniss Jenkins to consider as he is looking more and more like a guy who can handle a dual role of backup point guard and sometimes playing off the ball with Cade Cunningham.
The trade deadline is in early February, and the Pistons would love for everyone to be healthy and playing well so they can either get a good sense of the market or give their roster a boost of confidence by not making a big move.
But they can’t do anything until Ivey gets healthy and even amidst some good news, there has to be concern about his timeline.