Detroit Pistons Weekly: Luigi Datome Closer To Returning

There was much fuss made in Motown when the Detroit Pistons signed Italian sharpshooter Luigi Datome over the summer.

Luigi Datome didn’t play in the preseason because of hamstring and foot injuries. (NBA.com photo)

After all, the Pistons were a dreadful long-distance shooting team in 2012-13 and adding Datome was certainly going to address that issue. Datome was the most valuable player in the Italy’s Lega Basket Serie A last season, averaging 16.4 points and 5.6 rebounds while shooting 39.4 percent from distance in 48 games for Virtus Roma.

Undrafted, Datome signed a two-year free-agent deal with the Pistons in July. But when he got to camp, he was a bit beaten up. According to the Detroit News, Datome reported to camp with a hamstring injury and a sore left foot that he picked up during EuroBasket while playing for Italy.

Datome hopes to practice on Monday after not being able to play at all in the preseason. The 6’9” wing won’t be able to make an early impact for the Pistons, but coach Maurice Cheeks admits the team could use his shooting touch sooner rather than later.

On the floor, the Pistons won their final two preseason games to finish the preseason with a 4-4 mark. Here’s a quick look at those final two practice tilts.

Oct. 22: Pistons 99, Washington Wizards 96

After losing three of four preseason games away from home, the Pistons returned to the Palace of Auburn Hills and held off the Wizards down the stretch after squandering a 22-point halftime lead.

Detroit led 65-43 at the break, but Washington stormed back to tie the game at 83-83 midway through the fourth quarter. Kyle Singler and Chauncey Billups hit back-to-back 3-pointers to put the Pistons on top for good and Glen Rice of the Wizards missed a potential game-tying heave at the buzzer.

• The Good: Greg Monroe led the offense with 18 points, while Will Bynum had 13 points and nine assists in 25 minutes off the bench. Andre Drummond yanked down 14 rebounds to go with his nine points.
• The Bad: Monroe needed 13 shots to score those 18 points, going just 5-for-13 from the floor. Charlie Villanueva didn’t play in the second half because of a back injury.
• The Ugly: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope continued to have trouble finding the range on his shot, going 2-for-6 and 1-of-5 from 3-point land.

Oct. 24: Pistons 99, Minnesota Timberwolves 98

Josh Smith sent the crowd home happy—and on time—as he hit a 3-pointer as time expired to give Detroit a one-point win.

Smith confessed to the Detroit Free Press that the Pistons were either going to win or lose on that final possession.

“Yeah, we didn’t want to go in overtime in the preseason,” Smith said about the last shot.

• The Good: Andre Drummond was a monster, finishing with 20 rebounds—eight on the offensive glass—and 11 points. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope finally showed why he was taken eighth overall in the draft, scoring 13 points on 6-of-10 shooting. Will Bynum had 17 points and nine assists.
• The Bad: Peyton Siva started and played 22 minutes, but finished with two points, two turnovers, four assists and a minus-9 plus/minus rating.
• The Ugly: Smith hit the game-winner, yes, and he scored 20 points to lead Detroit. But, man, did he put the ball up a lot to do it. Smith was just 6-for-17 from the floor, decided that jacking up nine 3-pointers was a good idea (he made three) and was a hideous 5-for-11 from the free-throw line. But at least he had three turnovers, so there was that.

Up next:

Regular season, baby! The Pistons will play three times in the season’s opening week.

Wednesday: vs. Washington, 7:30 p.m. EDT

Friday: at Memphis, 8 p.m. EDT

Sunday: vs. Boston, 6 p.m. EST

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