Detroit Pistons: 3 players who should be playing more

2. Jon Leuer

One undeniable truth about this Detroit team is that Griffin and Drummond have to be healthy and playing at a high level for it to make the playoffs and possibly produce its first postseason victory in a decade.

The concerning part about that is Griffin has been notoriously injury-prone for the last four years, and right now he’s tied for No. 6 in the NBA in minutes played, logging 35.8 minutes a night.

Casey could use someone who can chip away at that workload and provide quality minutes as a backup power forward, and Jon Leuer is the best candidate.

Leuer was solid for the Pistons two years ago (during the Stan Van Gundy era), averaging 10.2 points and 5.4 rebounds as a part-time starter getting over 25 minutes per game. Last season he was sidelined for all but eight games with an ankle injury, and then he had knee surgery in August.

Casey has been slowly working Leuer back into the rotation. Some would argue too slowly, however. Leuer has appeared in six games this season and played just 7.7 minutes per game.

Leuer has the skills to be an effective stretch-4 that can shoot the ball and run the floor, but he doesn’t have Griffin’s acumen for ball-handling and making plays. Casey can’t just plug Leuer in and get the same thing he gets from his starting power forward, but he could use Leuer to help keep his top star fresh for the long haul.