Brandon Jennings tore his Achilles at the end of January during last season and is currently in the process of recovering from that injury. Head coach Stan Van Gundy had been holding out hope that Jennings would be able to return from the injury for the start of the season but that hope seems to have gone by the wayside as Jennings is reportedly not expected back until the middle or end of December, according to Kevin Bull of the Detroit Free Press.
Achilles injuries typically go with the timetable of 8-10 months but it is also one of the most gruesome injuries an athlete can suffer and everyone recovers differently from it. The start of the NBA season would be the nine month mark for Jennings but the Pistons have decided they want to take a more cautious approach and wait at least 11 months before he returns. The Pistons have the luxury of being able to be cautious with Jennings because they have Reggie Jackson who just signed a big five year deal.
As for what kind of role Jennings will play when he returns now that Jackson is there and one of their premier players, Van Gundy said a lot will depend on how Jennings looks health wise.
"If he comes back and he's the Brandon Jennings that we had last year, I think those guys can play together quite well, Reggie is big enough to guard guys off the ball and everything else. It just gives you two playmakers on the floor together. I think they can be pretty dynamic, but we'll just have to see where Brandon is when he comes back," said Van Gundy.
Jackson is being paid like a top point guard so he is definitely the starter at point guard regardless of Jennings' health it is just a matter of whether Jennings would be in consideration to start alongside Jackson or whether he would be coming off the bench. The most likely option is that Jennings would be asked to provide scoring punch off the bench and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope starts at the other guard spot but Van Gundy thinks the two point guards can play together so that is another option.
Van Gundy has said that the only locks to start are Jackson and Andre Drummond so if Jennings comes back healthy in December he may be able to work his way into that mix. The likelihood though is that Jennings will be eased back into action off the bench upon his return and the Pistons can only hope he picks up where he left off a season ago.
