Let’s take a look at how the Detroit Pistons young core performed this season.
Let’s take a look at the performance of the 13 Pistons players who played some type of role for the Detroit Pistons this season. I put the cutoff point at 28 games played to make sure trade deadline acquisition Dennis Schroder and injured Jaden Ivey would make the cut. I’ll offer my thoughts on the player’s performance and my thoughts on their future with the team. In order to keep things comparable, we’ll look at their averages with the following format:
- Points/rebounds/assists/steals/blocks on FG%/3P%/FT%
Cade Cunningham – 35.0 minutes over 70 games
Regular season: 26.1/6.1/9.1/1.0/0.8 on 47%/36%/85%
Playoffs: 25.0/8.3/8.7/1.8/1.3 on 43%/18%/83%
Analysis: Cade took The Leap this season. He was a candidate for Most Improved Player, could make an All-NBA team, and carried the Pistons to their first playoff win in 17 years. Cunningham and Nikola Jokic were the only two players in the league to average 26+ points and 9+ assists. He absolutely put the rest of the league on notice that Cade Cunningham has arrived.
Looking forward: Cade’s biggest weaknesses this season were his turnovers and three-point shooting. Every opponent’s gameplan will involve stopping him, but he still has a loose handle or makes a questionable pass from time-to-time. He struggled to shoot it from deep in the playoffs, and credit NYK for going under screens to dare him to shoot from outside. I have no doubt he’ll be practicing his off-the-dribble threes this summer.
Jaden Ivey – 29.9 minutes over 30 games
Regular season: 17.6/4.1/4.0/0.9/0.4 on 46%/41%/73%
Playoffs: n/a
Analysis: Man, what a great season for Ivey until his leg fracture that kept him out for the rest of the year. He did fantastic, especially from deep, starting with Cade in the backcourt. With JB Bickerstaff staggering Cade and Ivey in the rotation, Ivey essentially served as the backup point guard as well. If his three-point shooting is legit, look out.
Looking forward: Ivey will be the starting SG at the start of next season as he recovers from his leg injury. He needs to continue to working on his jump shot as I believe his ability to hit from deep will be huge for the starting five. The more teams respect him from the three-point line, the easier it’ll be for him to drive to the rim. Let’s hope his jump in his three-point percentage is for real.
Jalen Duren – 26.1 minutes over 78 games
Regular season: 11.8/10.3/2.7/0.7/1.1 on 69%/0%/67%
Playoffs: 11.8/10.7/3.5/0.3/1.7 on 65%/0%/83%
Analysis: Duren was an absolute beast this season. He’s an elite pick-and-roll lob threat with Cade, and he displayed improved defense and playmaking throughout the year. He took on a bigger passing role this postseason as NYK looked to double Cunningham, and Duren showed he has the skillset to take on an increased playmaking role next year.
Looking forward: Duren earned himself an extension this summer. At 21 years old, he’s still among the youngest players in the NBA, and his development this year can’t be understated. However, I’m not sure playing Ausar and Duren together is what’s best for the team long term. When one of the young players is finally traded, I can’t help but think it’ll be one of those two due to their inability to shoot.
Ausar Thompson – 22.5 minutes over 59 games
Regular season: 10.1/5.1/2.3/1.7/0.7 on 54%/22%/64%
Playoffs: 11.5/5.2/1.0/1.2/0.8 on 57%/0%/58%
Analysis: What a polarizing prospect Ausar has been. He returned this season from last year’s blood clot, and took over his spot in the starting lineup after Ivey’s season-ending injury. The jumper still doesn’t look good, but hopefully continuous practice will Fred Vinson will work its magic. Though, I’m not sure Ausar ever becomes a legitimate jump shooter.
Looking forward: Ausar should be the starting SF for Detroit next season as he shares the frontcourt with Tobias Harris and Jalen Duren. My biggest worry about Detroit and their young core is the pairing of Ausar and Duren. I’m of the belief that Cade and Ivey would benefit with more spacing around them, and I think Detroit will always deal with spacing issues when Ausar and Duren share the floor together.
Isaiah Stewart – 19.9 minutes over 72 games
Regular season: 6.0/5.5/1.7/0.4/1.4 on 56%/32%/76%
Playoffs: n/a (1 game)
Analysis: Beef Stew provided elite rim protection this season, and showed the league that he belongs on the list of best rim protectors. He’s switchable on defense, can guard point guards in space, and knows how to vertically contest shots at the rim. He was finally in his ideal role of first big off the bench, and he was excellent in it.
Looking forward: This team desperately missed Stewart in the playoffs this year, and Detroit would likely be looking at a series victory if he was able to play after Game 1. In a rotation that already features two non-shooters and a rookie that shot 24% from, my biggest complaint about this season is the lack of threes that Stewart shot. To put it into perspective, his attempts were less per game than his rookie year. If Beef Stew is going to make a leap offensively, he needs to shoot more threes.
Ron Holland – 15.6 minutes over 81 games
Regular season: 6.4/2.7/1.0/0.6/0.2 on 47%/24%/75%
Playoffs: 1.8/1.2/0.0/0.2/0.0 on 0%/0%/90%
Analysis: What an absolute surprise Ron was this year. I was convinced he was going to spend his rookie season with the Cruise, but he played a legitimate role for this team. He’s in your face when he’s guarding you on the perimeter, and he had some extremely impressive finishes at the rim this year.
Looking forward: If Ausar Thompson is in the gym with Fred Vinson this summer, Ron Holland will be with them. His ability to develop as a 3-and-D scorer would be huge for this team. My dream future scenario is being able to play Cade, Ausar, and Ron together as the 1-2-3 to make a jumbo lineup with Cade as the shortest player.
Marcus Sasser – 14.2 minutes over 57 games
Regular season: 6.6/1.2/2.3/0.6/0.1 on 46%/38%/84%
Playoffs: n/a
Analysis: Marcus Sasser was the king of consistency is a year of inconsistency. His minutes and play time were incredibly inconsistent throughout the season. Yet, every time he was on the floor, he played well. He continues to be a better scorer than a playmaker, but he can fit off-ball with either Cade or Ivey.
Looking forward: I think Sasser deserves to be the fourth guard on next year’s team. He’s cheap, he’s a reliable three-point shooter, and he fits well next to the guards already on the roster. However, I could also see Sasser being moved in a trade this summer if some consolidation of the young guys occurs.