There was by far no bigger surprise for the Pistons last season than Swedish rookie forward Jonas Jerebko. His work ethic was evident in the way he hustled on a nightly basis, which translated to a more than respectable nine points and six rebounds per game.
Unfortunately, his work ethic had to go into his rehab this year after he ruptured his achilles in a preseason game against the Heat.
Despite his best efforts to return to the lineup this year, it doesn’t appear that is likely [via MLIVE]:
Kuester shook his head no repeatedly Wednesday evening when asked whether he expected Jerebko to return this season.
“This kid – I’ve been in the business for 20 years – I’ve never seen a kid work so hard to try to get back,” Kuester said. “It’s killing him. It’s killing him. This young man is working extremely hard to put himself in a position to play.”
That doesn’t mean the rehab isn’t going well, though. Jerebko stresses that it’s going “very good” and that he feels faster. At this point, though, there’s absolutely no use bringing him back this late in a wasted season if he’s not without a doubt 100-percent healthy.