The Pistons hope to get Cade Cunningham back for the playoffs and add him to their recent success, but it may not be so simple. The Nuggets had a similar situation when Nikola Jokic was injured earlier in the season, but surprisingly saw some struggles when he first came back. Even though the Pistons can afford to rest players now with the first seed locked up, they could see unexpected rust trying to get everyone back on the court.
Adding Jokic back to the Nuggets didn't instantly make them better
The Nuggets thought they had a great thing going when they were able to put together a 10-6 record without Jokic earlier this season. It was a very promising sign for a team that has historically struggled without their MVP on the court. But Denver went just 9-11 in the first 20 games after Jokic came back from injury.
Rather than seeing an immediate boost, the Nuggets saw some chemistry issues with play style changes to accommodate Jokic's role. Naturally, he dominates the ball when he plays because he's such a complete offensive player; the same can be said of Cade on the Pistons. When both stars went out, other players stepped up in their place and their teams implemented new systems that included more ball movement.
The Pistons will likely need a readjustment period with Cade
But it can be very difficult to add a ball-dominant player back into a free-flowing system. The Pistons have averaged 31 assists per game since Cade Cunningham went down with injury, including a 9-2 record over that span. This is up from their season average of 27.5 because they're having to pass the ball around more without Cade.
That doesn't mean that Cade necessarily holds the offense back, but the change in play style has been noteworthy. The Pistons are getting more distributed scoring and playmaking contributions from other key players across the roster. Those guys may not be able to produce at the same level when Cade comes back and their roles diminish.
Unfortunately, the timing of Cade's injury makes it difficult for the Pistons to incorporate him back into the team ahead of the playoffs. After the most recent injury update, the earliest he can return is April 9th, which would leave just 2 games in the regular season. Assuming it takes some time for him to ramp back up to full conditioning, Cade may not be at full strength by the start of the playoffs.
Adding in even more time to re-establish chemistry with the team sets Cade back further into the playoffs. The Pistons will need to be careful about how they bring their superstar back into the fold as the postseason approaches.