The Detroit Pistons finally play their first Summer League game today as they face the Orlando Magic. The game will pit the fifth pick, Detroit’s Ausar Thompson, against the sixth pick, Orlando’s Anthony Black.
The game will be broadcast on ESPN at around 5:30 p.m. ET, depending on when the preceding game at the Thomas and Mack Center concludes.
This has not been a kind Summer League to the crop of rookies. The hotly anticipated debut of Victor Wembanyama landed with a bit of a thud as he struggled outside of some truly nice passes and playmaking. No. 2 pick Brandon Miller has struggled a bit in the early going, third pick Scoot Henderson got off to a blazing first quarter but then injured himself.
The same goes for Ausar Thompson’s twin brother Amen, who looked fantastic in the open floor for the Houston Rockets, but he sprained his ankle and will find himself in a walking boot. That means the anticipated matchup between the twins in Detroit’s second Summer League game will be Amen-less.
Depending on how much Detroit puts the ball in Ausar’s hand, and how much coach Jarrett Jack wants to let Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren get out and run, Thompson, Pistons Edition, could be in line for a big debut himself.
For now, it’ll just be nice to see some Pistons basketball and here is hoping Ausar and Marcus and everyone else remains healthy. If you recall, Jaden Ivey had a great start to his second Summer League game last year before an ankle injury sidelined him. I just don’t want to see a repeat of that.