Jerami Grant is set to return to action against the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday, according to a Yahoo Sports report. Grant has missed the past four games and 10 of the past 13 with right knee soreness. That has coincided with an extra emphasis on the youth movement in Detroit with fellow veterans Mason Plumlee, Wayne Ellington and Cory Joseph being rested or missing games because of general maladies.
Call me a cynic, but this might also be the last game we see Grant suit up for the Pistons this season. The Sixers are one of the league’s best teams so there seems to be little downside in giving Grant another game on the floor. The Pistons will likely be outmatched either way and lose the game. This would also perhaps keep the NBA executives in New York from taking a closer look at Detroit’s recent lineups and seeming interest in putting their foot on the gas of their tank as they conclude this season.
Detroit currently owns the second-worst record in the NBA behind only the Houston Rockets. They are two games up in the loss column on the Minnesota Timberwolves and Oklahoma City Thunder with six games to play with the next two against the Grizzlies and Sixers.
Following the Sixers game, the Pistons will be on the second night of a back-to-back, so they will almost certainly be resting any player of consequence including Grant. They will play the struggling Chicago Bulls in that contest.
After the Bulls, the Pistons play the suddenly feisty Timberwolves and then conclude the season with games against the Denver Nuggets and Miami Heat. It’s too early to say, but both those teams might still be interested in winning for the sake of seeding in the playoffs.
Grant is averaging 22.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists so far this season.