After a midseason trade with the Sacramento Kings that brought Marvin Bagley III to Detroit, the Pistons wasted no time signing the former No. 2 overall pick to a three-year contract on June 30. Bagley, who is still just 23 years old, has something of a fresh start in Detroit after falling short of pre-draft expectations in Sacramento and, by all accounts, Troy Weaver and the Pistons are high on what the former Duke standout could bring to the table. Unfortunately, Bagley left Tuesday evening’s preseason game against the Oklahoma City Thunder with what appears to be a non-contact knee injury.
Within the first minute of the game, Bagley slipped on the floor and, within seconds, he was being helped off the floor
WARNING
This is how Bagley gets hurt. You don't have to watch if you don't want to.
WARNING pic.twitter.com/rSXPlgZNIF
— A full clip in the burner (@HalsVids) October 11, 2022
Shortly after his exit, Chris Haynes of Yahoo reported Bagley has a right knee injury and would not return to action.
Detroit Pistons forward Marvin Bagley III suffered a right knee injury and will not return to tonight’s game.
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) October 11, 2022
It remains to be seen how serious the injury might be, and it seems likely that Detroit will set up imaging on the knee to take a deeper look. Hopefully this will not be a long-term setback for Bagley and the Pistons, but it did not look good in the moment. In his stead, the Pistons do have options in the frontcourt, including rookie Jalen Duren and veterans like Isaiah Stewart and Nerlens Noel, but Bagley is clearly in the team’s plans and it would be best for all if he avoided serious injury.
