Detroit Pistons Miss Starter vs Golden State Warriors

The Detroit Pistons ruled out Tim Hardaway Jr. against the Warriors.
Jan 1, 2025; Detroit, Michigan, USA;  Detroit Pistons forward Tim Hardaway Jr. (8) smiles as he stands on the foul line after being fouled by the Orlando Magic late in the fourth quarter at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images
Jan 1, 2025; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Pistons forward Tim Hardaway Jr. (8) smiles as he stands on the foul line after being fouled by the Orlando Magic late in the fourth quarter at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images / Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

On Thursday night, the Detroit Pistons returned to their home court to host the Golden State Warriors. While they looked forward to getting a key player back in the mix, the Pistons suddenly ruled out the starting forward Tim Hardaway Jr roughly 30 minutes before tip-off.

According to the Pistons’ injury report, Hardaway was dealing with lower-back tightness. As a result, the Pistons decided not to roll with the veteran for the night. Hardaway joined the veteran guard Jaden Ivey as the only other player dealing with a setback on the injury report.

Injuries have been rare for the 32-year-old sharpshooter this season. While Hardaway had a three-game stretch of absences back in November, he hasn’t missed a game since November 17.

Tim Hardaway J
Jan 6, 2025; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Pistons forward Tim Hardaway Jr. (8) grabs a rebound in front of Portland Trail Blazers center Deandre Ayton (2) in the fourth quarter at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images / Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

For the last 22 games, Hardaway has struggled with his shot. Taking eight shots per game, he’s been knocking down 40 percent of his attempts, averaging 31 percent from three.

Regardless of the struggles from the field, Hardaway hasn’t seen a role change. From the start of the season, the veteran forward was in the starting lineup.

In total, Hardaway has made 34 appearances with the Pistons. Taking roughly six shots from beyond the arc per game, the veteran forward is averaging 37 percent from deep on the season. He’s posting averages of 11 points, two rebounds, and two assists.

Over the 2024 offseason, Hardaway wrapped up his sixth season with the Dallas Mavericks. He appeared in 79 games during the regular season last year. In the playoffs, Hardaway came off the bench, averaging 13 minutes of action during the Mavs’ NBA Finals run, which resulted in a loss against the Boston Celtics.

In July, the Mavericks traded Hardaway to the Pistons. Detroit gave up multiple future second-round picks and the veteran forward Quentin Grimes, who came over to Detroit from the New York Knicks during last year’s trade deadline.

It’s unclear how severe Hardaway’s setback is, but he took a breather on Thursday night. The next chance Hardaway could be back out on the floor is on Saturday when the Pistons host the Toronto Raptors,

Detroit Gets a Reinforcement

Tim Hardaway Jr. might’ve been a late addition to the Detroit Pistons’ injury report ahead of Wednesday’s game against the Golden State Warriors, but the Pistons were fortunate enough to at least get a reinforcement back in the lineup.

The second-year veteran wing Ausar Thompson was cleared for action.

Lately, Thompson has been dealing with an illness. The last time he took the court was against the Minnesota Timberwolves on January 4. Thompson checked in for 25 minutes and scored 10 points while collecting 10 rebounds and six steals.

On January 6, the Pistons were set to host the Portland Trail Blazers. Although Thompson was initially on pace to play, he was downgraded to questionable as tip-off approached. The Pistons rolled without Thompson against Portland. They collected a three-point win in his absence.

On Wednesday night, the Pistons fired up a back-to-back set, beginning with a matchup against the Brooklyn Nets. Once again, the Pistons played without Thompson. Detroit picked up its fifth-straight win with a 15-point victory over Brooklyn.

When the Pistons revealed their first injury report for Thursday’s outing against Golden State, Thompson was upgraded to probable to play. Not only was he cleared to play against the Warriors, but Thompson was inserted into the starting lineup for the fifth time this year.

Leading up to Thursday’s action, Thompson has been averaging seven points, five rebounds, two steals, and two assists.


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Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO