DETROIT — After the Detroit Pistons’ most depleted game of the season Monday night, some top contributors are coming back.
The Pistons were without their top five scorers to face the NBA-leading Oklahoma City Thunder on the road Monday night and still put up quite the fight to take the game into overtime.
The matchup didn’t go Detroit’s way, but now they’re getting back three key starters in center Jalen Duren, veteran forward Tobias Harris and sharp-shooting guard Duncan Robinson for Tuesday night’s home game against the Toronto Raptors.
The trio are managing injuries that have built up throughout the long NBA season and having back-to-back games with a late tip time on Monday the Pistons opted to give them time to recuperate.
Duren’s dealing with a right knee injury while Harris and Robinson are both going through hip ailments.
Duren, Harris and Robinson are the top three scorers on the team outside of superstar guard Cade Cunningham and have been crucial to filling in the gaps without their top player over the last seven games.
The Pistons still don’t have a clean bill of health as Cunningham and Isaiah Stewart remain out due to their respective injuries. However, Stewart had some recent positive news as he was cleared to resume on-court activities on Saturday.
Despite popping up on the injury report early on Tuesday, bench contributors Marcus Sasser (right hip strain) and Caris LeVert (right knee patellar tendinopathy) will both be available for the Pistons, as well.