Pistons coach Van Gundy: Jennings will be limited in camp

Point guard Brandon Jennings won’t be a full participant in Detroit Pistons training camp, which begins Tuesday. Team president/coach Stan Van Gundy told Pistons.com that Jennings, still rehabbing his left Achilles, “won’t be able to do anything with the group in camp.”

That makes it a safe bet that Jennings won’t be available for the season opener, Oct. 27 at the Atlanta Hawks.

It also clarifies conflicting reports from earlier this week.

NBA.com’s David Aldridge reported that Jennings, who suffered the season-ending injury in late January, “wasn’t close to being cleared.” CSN Chicago Bulls Insider Vinnie Goodwill said on Twitter the following day that Jennings was “cleared for full basketball activities.”

Jennings retweeted Goodwill’s news, giving it an added level of credibility. Goodwill even gave a timetable of Jennings being game-ready by late November or early December.

The tweet came on the same day that Jennings was New York for a checkup with medical personnel who performed his surgery.

The discrepancy appears to be just a matter of semantics there is long distance from completing drills to being game-ready. Even if Jennings hits the reported timetable, which is consistent with what he and Van Gundy have said, he will have missed roughly a quarter of the season.

Observers say Jennings is making good progress and has attacked his rehab diligently. But an Achilles rupture is a catastrophic injury.

Van Gundy repeatedly has said that he needs to see Jennings show the ability to change directions to have him considered even close to returning.

Jennings was playing arguably the best basketball of his career at the time of his injury. He starred as the Pistons went on a 12-3 run after jettisoning Josh Smith a few days before Christmas. With the uncertainty surrounding Jennings, the Pistons this offseason traded for veteran Steve Blake to provide depth behind Reggie Jackson. Second-year point guard Spencer Dinwiddie is also on the roster.

Van Gundy also told Pistons.com that center Aron Baynes (ankle surgery) won’t be ready for practicing twice per day as the team takes a slow approach to his recovery.

(c)2015 Detroit Free Press

Visit the Detroit Free Press at www.freep.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.