I'm curious if Walton has had Bagley practicing with the team, not in full-on contact scrimmages, but in walk-throughs that the coach uses to teach his players how to play defense in multiple situations. Granted, a walk-through isn't the same as a contact scrimmage, much less a game, but it seems to me that it would give Bagley a head start when he's cleared to scrimmage in practice and play in a game. A lot of defense consists of mental habits, knowing when to cover for whom and how to play against certain situations, such as a pick and roll. If a player mentally rehearses these situations over and over again, it should help him out considerably when he finally does start practicing and playing for real.
I think Bagley's defensive limitations are exaggerated. For one thing, he's the best rebounder on the team. Defensive rebounding is part of defense. So if you start from that premise, then add his shot blocking around the basket, it's not like he's going to make the Kings' defense a sieve when he comes back. Remember, last year Bagley was a difference maker on this team. It's not even arguable. When he was playing, the Kings played better and were winning games. When he was out, they took a big step down. We'll have to revisit this theme of "Bagley's defensive inadequacies" at the beginning of the New Year. Maybe I'll be eating crow, but I'm not getting out my crow-eating cutlery just yet.