AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Cleveland Cavaliers guard J.R. Smith returned Thursday night against the Detroit Pistons in his first game since fracturing the thumb on his right shooting hand in December.
Smith came of the bench and played 19 minutes in the Cavs' 106-101 loss.
"I felt good," Smith said. "Just trying to get used to running up and down the floor again. But I felt better than I thought I was going to be. My shots were short and didn't fall so I just tried to make an impact on the defensive end when I was out there."
He finished with three points on 1-of-9 shooting (1-of-8 from 3-point range).
Smith, who according to coach Tyronn Lue was playing on an undisclosed minute restriction, said in self-deprecating fashion that it wasn't as disappointing of a shooting line because he struggled with his shot prior to the thumb injury this season.
"Well, the good part about it, I left off with not shooting the ball good," Smith said. "So, I mean I get to come in pretty much on a clean slate. So that's pretty cool."
Smith suffered his injury Dec. 20 and missed 35 games following surgery. His initial timeline for return was set at 12 to 14 weeks. He beat the estimate by about a week.
Smith came into the game leery of absorbing any contact on his right hand, but said he was glad to get that out of the way after he swiped down on the ball when Detroit's Stanley Johnson had possession of it.
"Hit my hand pretty good," Smith said. "That was like the first time I really hit it and it was fine. It was kind of a shock a little bit, but it didn't hurt or anything so it was pretty cool.
"I'm glad it happened the first game instead of the second or third game where you don't know how to handle it."
Smith said his next hurdle to overcome will be adjusting to limited minutes while he gets his legs back underneath him.
"I mean, the mental part was the minute restriction," said Smith, who came into the game averaging 28.9 minutes per game this season. "That's the frustrating part for me, anyway. I mean, you're going to make or miss shots all the time, but when you're just not playing like how you think you want to, but also understanding the trainers and everybody has your best interest at heart, it's kind of tit for tat. But I think I handled it pretty well."
It was Smith's 145th game with the Cavs after being acquired from the New York Knicks in the 2014-15 season, but just the second time he has come off the bench. Lue said it is possible Smith will resume his starting place at some point.
"I think so," Lue said. "But we'll see. We'll see how the team is functioning and how we're playing."
Smith signed a four-year, $57 million extension with Cleveland in the offseason and is averaging 8.6 points on 33.7 percent shooting, 2.1 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 21 games played this season.
"Toughness," said LeBron James when asked what Smith's return means for the team. "He brings a lot of toughness on the perimeter. He's a smart player with championship DNA. That helps."
James said he already has prepped Smith to be patient as he reacclimatizes himself to a team that now features three rotation players -- Derrick Williams, Deron Williams and Kyle Korver -- who were not in Cleveland the last time he played.
"You can't fast-track it when you've been out so long," James said. "You can't get frustrated with the process. That's what it's all about. And as great as J.R. has been for us, he can't automatically think that he's going to be exactly where he was when he went out. It will take some time and as a team we have to understand that as well. So that's the main thing."
While the Cavs welcome the returns of Smith and Lue, who missed the past three days with a bout of vertigo, they missed the presence of Korver, who was out Thursday with a strained tendon in his left foot.
"You get one back and you lose one, but thankfully Korver's is not as serious," Lue said. "He should be back in due time."
