Pistons' Drummond game-time decision vs. Knicks

New York – Pistons center Andre Drummond’s absence could be short-lived.

After sitting out Monday’s 104-88 win over the Thunder with a sprained right ankle, Drummond said he’ll be a “game-time decision” tonight against the Knicks.

“I was able to move around at shoot-around,” Drummond said following the team’s morning walkthrough at the New York Athletic Club. “It's obviously a process but day by day I'm getting better, so I'm trying to get myself ready to go.”

Drummond said he suffered the injury in the first half against the Nuggets last week when forward Kenneth Faried jumped on his back during a dunk.

“My foot just gave out on me and I felt it, but I just told myself I'll be fine and just play through it,” Drummond said. “But it got worse as the night went on.”

If Drummond is unable to go, backup Aron Baynes will make his second straight start with Boban Marjanovic also seeing extended minutes. Baynes recorded 20 points and eight rebounds in 34 minutes and Marjanovic added four points, four rebounds and two blocks in 12 minutes off the bench against the Thunder.

"With those guys, like I said in the beginning of the year, having those guys off the bench for us is huge because both of them are NBA starters,” Drummond said. “For them to come in, play the way they played against a great team and against a great guard like Russell Westbrook and help slow him down a little bit, that was huge.”

While Baynes proved he can temporarily fill the void, Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said he doesn’t plan on giving Drummond any more rest than he needs.

"My thinking on injuries is always the same,” Van Gundy said.

“When our doctors or whoever is involved say he can go, he can go. We don't hold him extra time because of anything or we don't try to bring him back any quicker. I hope we're making sound decisions all the time. When he's ready to go, he plays. If he's not ready to go, he doesn't."

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