The Pistons formally announced today that starting point guard Reggie Jackson will be out of action for six to eight weeks, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com.
Jackson has been diagnosed with a UCL strain in his right thumb and tendinosis in his left knee. He received platelet-rich plasma injections in both the thumb and the knee today.
The timeline for Jackson’s return matches what coach/executive Stan Van Gundy projected over the weekend. Jackson is expected to be on crutches for up to a week following the injections.
The knee started bothering Jackson in September, tweets Keith Langlois of NBA.com. At first, Jackson thought he could play through the pain, but it didn’t get any better once camp opened. He hadn’t planned to take care of the thumb now, but it made sense while he was sidelined because of the knee (Twitter link).
Jackson’s earliest projected return would bring him to mid-November, which means he would miss about 10 games. Ish Smith, whom the Pistons signed as a free agent over the summer, is expected to be the starting point guard until Jackson is healthy enough to take over.