Detroit Pistons center Isaiah Stewart has been diagnosed with a bone bruise in his right knee and will be re-evaluated in a week, the team announced Tuesday.
It’s potentially a dodged bullet for Stewart, who exited the second quarter of Monday’s home win against the Atlanta Hawks when Clint Capela collided with his knee after falling down. The timeline the Pistons provided positions Stewart to return as soon as next Thursday’s road game against the Orlando Magic on March 17.
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“I hate to see him go down,” Cade Cunningham said after Monday’s 113-110 victory. “He’s a tough dude, so I have full faith that he will make a good recovery. He’s meant a lot to us, means a lot to our team, and moving forward he’s going to continue to mean a lot to us and be a big part, not only just on the court but vocally and in the locker room.”
Stewart has been one of Detroit’s most important players this season, averaging 8.2 points, a team-high 8.5 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game. His absence will open the door for more minutes for Marvin Bagley III, who has found a nice groove with the Pistons since arriving at the trade deadline.
In six games, Bagley is averaging 13.8 points and 6.7 rebounds in 24.5 minutes. Since Bagley’s arrival, the Pistons have won six of eight games and are in the midst of their best stretch of basketball this season. That can’t be solely credited to Bagley, who missed three games in that span with a left ankle sprain.
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But the former 2018 No. 2 pick been a productive player for Detroit.
“He’s a post-up threat,” Dwane Casey said after practice Tuesday. “When the defenses collapses he can kick it out. He can run the floor, a good screen and roller, passer out of the pick-and-roll situation. It’s a lot of skillsets there. He’s not a finished product, there’s still work to be done to continue to get better.”
Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @omarisankofa. Read more on the Detroit Pistons and sign up for our Pistons newsletter.