Detroit Pistons guard Brandon Jennings is out for at least six months, he told fans via Twitter on Sunday.
“6/9months,” he said. “Not being able to play basketball is the worst thing.”
Jennings was injured in the third quarter of the Pistons game against the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night.
Jennings clutched his left leg while writhing on the floor. The team confirmed later Sunday that the injury is a torn Achilles tendon.
Jennings had helped lead the Pistons back into the playoff race following the waiving of Josh Smith by Detroit.
The team is thin at point guard now, with backup D.J. Augustin likely to try to fill Jennings role but his backup unclear.
“Jennings was playing better than he ever had. He was with one of the hottest teams in professional basketball,” noted Michigan Live.
“Jennings wasn’t just good lately, he had few peers among Eastern Conference point guards for the last month. He would not have made the All-Star Game because of the numbers game and quality names ahead of him, but he made the Pistons churn -- and when they did, they were operating at an offensive efficiency, and a bristling pace, which measured them among the NBA’s most explosive teams since Christmas.”
The Pistons will likely utilize different game plans now, and seek an outside player for their backup point guard role. Marc Stein of ESPN said that the Pistons are among the teams showing interest in veteran Pablo Prigioni of the New York Knicks.
The Pistons are currently 17-27, 1.5 games behind the Charlotte Hornets for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.
