Right off top, the team is garbage. People who thought this team was going to make the playoffs were delusional. Don't get this writer wrong, Cade Cunningham is a nice addition, but it's rare that a rookie leads the worst team in basketball to respectability in their first season.
That said, this team literally cannot win without Cade. They've won a grand total of THREE games of the eighteen he missed. Granted, they often didn't win WITH him (20-44), but they won a great deal more than without him. It's hard to tell just by looking at the record, but this team really hit its stride once he was added to the line-up after missing the first several games with an injury. He looks like he's going to be a killer, so this writer is excited for the future of this team.
Of course, the Pistons aren't just Cade by himself. This writer is really a fan of Saddiq Bey. This dude can straight-up shoot the lights on any given night. When the game is on the line, with the way this team is currently constructed, Bey is the guy you want taking the final shot. Plus, he's an ironman.
Then, you have Marvin Bagley III, who's looking like that dude. This writer wasn't initially a fan of the trade that brought him in. This writer thought they could have done the deal with just Josh Jackson and Trey Lyles (who was playing his ass off at the time) and not thrown in the two second round picks. Things seem to be working out for the best though, as he clearly makes the team better. His biggest hole seems to be lazy defense. But he has good production. The Pistons would do well to re-sign him.
Jerami Grant is still a good player who a lot of teams want to trade for. He can do a lot of things and he can probably fetch a good bounty on the trade market, but he seems to like playing for the Pistons...for some reason. Anybody who knows anything about the NBA knows that Detroit isn't exactly a prime destination for free agents, so when you get a highly productive player, who actually wants to be there it's hard to support trading them. Sometimes it works out, like trading Jerry Stackhouse for Richard Hamilton (another trade this writer wasn't initially a fan of). Other times it doesn't, like trading Chauncey Billups to bring in Allen Iverson (who couldn't come to terms with his own decline at that point). The point is, if they DO trade Grant, they'd better make it count. We don't need Russell Westbrook and/or seven second round picks.
Other players have shown their worth. This writer likes Isaiah Stewert, Isaiah Livers, and Hamidou Diallo. Killian Hayes was looking like a bust for a minute but seems to have developed into a solid back-up. Rodney McGruder is usually a pleasant surprise when he gets in the game, but he's clearly not in the long-term plan. This writer also likes Frank Jackson, but when the roster really starts to take shape, he won't have spot. Kelly Olynyk gives the ladies someone to look at, but he should be on his way out because the frontcourt may be too crowded to make room for him. Carsen Edwards and Braxton Key are nice players who will be given their fair chance. Jamorko Pickett, Luka Garza, and Saben Lee are all players this writer likes, but probably wouldn't miss if they didn't return. And Cory Joseph...yeah...bye.
So, yeah, the Pistons blew chunks this year, but the future looks bright. Cade and Bey have potential to be one of the deadliest 1-2 punches in the league. No, they won't be Jordan-Pippen or Shaq-Kobe, but they'll make opponents say, "Crap! The Pistons are in town." They are pretty much untouchable as far as trades go. The off-season is going to be interesting. Who do they draft? Who gets traded? Who do they pluck out of free agency? And will any of those additions actually make them good? Can they build a championship-caliber around Cade? Only time will tell.
Until next time...
