National Basketball Association

Has Michael Gbinije earned a shot at the rotation?

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

foxsports

Michael Gbinije finally got on the floor for the Detroit Pistons in their last game against the Philadelphia 76ers and he impressed. Has he earned a longer look?

Michael Gbinije may already be the biggest surprise for the Detroit Pistons this preseason.

More from PistonPowered

After not getting on the floor for the Pistons’ first three games, he came in late in the second quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers and barely came back off.

Gbinije impressed over the course of his 22 minutes, shooting 3-of-4 from three-point range and scoring 11 points. He hit both of his free throws and added three rebounds, two steals and a block.

While Gbinije was absent from the first three games, it looks like he has impressed head coach Stan Van Gundy enough to earn a much longer look.

According to Van Gundy, Gbinije has been the best of the wings for the Detroit Pistons thus far in practice and on the floor.

#Pistons SVG: Over the last week, Michael Gbinije has been the best of the wings, so he deserves playing time in preseason.

— Rod Beard (@detnewsRodBeard) October 11, 2016

Gbinije has the versatility to play any spot from the one to the three and can guard any of those positions.

He played point guard at Syracuse, where he averaged 17.5 points and 4.3 assists per game with shooting splits of .461/.392/.663 in his senior season. It’s worth keeping an eye on his three-point shooting to see if it translated to the NBA level.

Gbinije possesses overwhelming size for the point guard position, standing 6’7″ and 200 lbs, although he’ll likely be playing small forward. He’s a bit old for a rookie as he turned 24 just a couple of weeks before draft night, which is a big strike against him.

The Pistons will play against the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday night, and it’s going to be interesting to see Gbinije hit the floor against a team full of athletic wings with builds similar to his own.

While Michael Gbinije was a foregone conclusion to join the Grand Rapids Drive in the NBA D-League once the season starts, it seems as though he’s suddenly forced his way into the conversation for a rotational spot.

This article originally appeared on