Smith (knee) is available for Saturday's game against the Bulls.
Smith will shed his questionable tag due to a right knee contusion and suit up Saturday. However, he isn't guaranteed to see meaningful minutes with Jalen Duren (suspension) back in the lineup.
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Pistons' Tolu Smith: Dealing with knee contusion
Rotowire
Smith is listed as questionable for Saturday's game against the Bulls due to a right knee contusion.
Smith may have sustained the injury during the Pistons' 126-111 win over the Knicks on Thursday, when he played 15 minutes and finished with three points, three rebounds and two assists. Even if he were cleared to play, Smith's minutes would likely take a significant dip, given that Jalen Duren will be available to play Saturday after serving a two-game suspension.
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Pistons' Tolu Smith: Cracks rotation Wednesday
Rotowire
Smith recorded up three points (1-3 FG, 1-3 FT), three rebounds and two assists in 15 minutes during Wednesday's 113-95 win over the Raptors.
With Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart both suspended, Smith entered the rotation as the backup to center Paul Reed, who entered the starting five in Duren's stead. The appearance was just Smith's sixth of the season with Detroit and his first at any level since Jan. 26, when he sustained a calf injury while playing for the G League's Motor City Cruise. Now healthy again, Smith should be part of the rotation for the Pistons' next game Feb. 19 versus the Knicks before Duren returns from his two-game ban Feb. 21 at Chicago.
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Pistons' Tolu Smith: Career-best performance
Rotowire
Smith accumulated nine points (1-7 FG, 7-8 FT), 14 rebounds, one assist, four blocks and one steal in 26 minutes during Saturday's 98-92 loss to the Clippers.
Smith played just the sixth game of his career, dominating the glass with a career-high 14 rebounds while adding a career-high four blocks. Both Jalen Duren (ankle) and Isaiah Stewart (illness) were sidelined, while Paul Reed was limited to just 22 minutes due to foul trouble. This allowed Smith to step into the largest role of his career, rewarding anyone who took a chance on him in deeper formats. While this was a great performance, it should be treated as nothing more than an outlier unless Duren and Stewart continue to miss time.
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Pistons' Tolu Smith: Rare appearance Wednesday
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Smith finished with six points (3-4 FG), seven rebounds, two assists and one block over 16 minutes during Wednesday's 124-113 victory over Chicago.
Smith played a season-high 16 minutes, moving into the rotation after it was earlier announced that Detroit would be without a number of its starters due to various injuries. This performance should not be viewed as anything other than an outlier, given he has not even been in the rotation for the majority of the season.
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Pistons' Tolu Smith: Double-doubles in preseason
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Smith produced 11 points (4-6 FG, 3-7 FT), 11 rebounds, two assists and one block in 12 minutes of Monday's 128-112 preseason win over Memphis.
Jalen Duren was out with hamstring soreness, allowing Smith to absorb some backup center minutes behind Isaiah Stewart. Smith, who is on a two-way contract, is expected to spend a lot of time in the G League this season. To his credit, he certainly showed the coaching staff that he'll be ready if his name is called upon this season.
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Pistons' Tolu Smith: Double-doubles in win
Rotowire
Smith racked up 15 points (4-7 FG, 7-8 FT), 12 rebounds, four assists and two blocks across 23 minutes during Sunday's 98-83 Summer League win against the Rockets.
Smith has recorded double-doubles in two straight games during the Las Vegas Summer League. The Mississippi State product continues to be a monster on the glass for Detroit, as he has racked up 23 boards across the last two games.
