Detroit Pistons: Regular Season Grades – Small Forwards
By Ti Windisch
Welcome to the third installment of my six-part series, your Detroit Pistons Regular Season Grades. We’ll go through all five positions and also Stan Van Gundy’s performance as head coach and president of the Pistons (that one is kind of a two-for-one deal).
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For this series I’m going to grade the player’s season in general, based on their offensive and defensive performance over the course of the season. The grades will be on your typical A+ through F scale, with incomplete also being an option. I’ll only be judging a player’s performance in Detroit for their grade.
If they were traded partially into the season, their work with their former team doesn’t factor into my decision. I’m also only grading players currently on Detroit’s roster. We’re strictly about the Pistons here.
This time around we’re going to go through the Pistons’ collection of small forwards. We’ll start with Caron Butler, then cover Cartier Martin and finish with Tayshaun Prince.
Caron Butler – C+
Caron Butler had a solid first season in Detroit. He played in all but four of the Pistons’ games and saw about 20 minutes a game, so he was a consistent presence at small forward for Van Gundy. He scored just under six points per game, so his impact was slight. We’ll look at his per 100 possessions statistics to help account for his low usage rate (just under 13 percent).
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 4/24/2015.
Although Martin is playing more efficiently (less turnovers, higher field goal percentage and free-throw percentage, better offensive rating) he is also having less of an overall impact. His rebounds, assists, steals and points per 100 possessions have all gone down, as has his defensive rating (if just by one point).
I gave him a C+ because I feel like he basically performed his required obligations, and a little bit more. He showed up and played in 78 games, his defense wasn’t great and he didn’t score a bunch, but he made a good-enough percentage of his shots. I doubt he’ll see 20 minutes per game anywhere next season, but who knows.
At this point in his career, Butler seems to have completely fallen into the role of bench presence, but he pulls it off well.
Cartier Martin – Incomplete
It’s probably for the best that Cartier Martin did not get the necessary minutes to qualify for a regular season grade. He’s had a long career somehow, considering his highest-ever season PER was 12.8 (league-average PER is always 15).
Martin played less than 200 minutes total in 22 games for Detroit, and never broke double-digit scoring in any of them. In fact, he only scored in eight of his 22 games. This is not surprising, considering he shot around 28 percent this season. Martin was a non-factor, and completely earned his incomplete grade.
Tayshaun Prince – B-
Tayshaun Prince is a Pistons legend, having been on the 2004 NBA Champion Detroit Pistons squad. He is no longer really suited to start 80 games like he did that season, but he was still a solid role player for Detroit this year. Essentially, he was just a better version of Caron Butler.
| Season | G | GS | FGA | FG% | 3PA | 3P% | FTA | FT% | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | PF | PTS | ORtg | DRtg | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-15 | 78 | 21 | 12.6 | .407 | 7.0 | .379 | 1.9 | .902 | 6.2 | 2.5 | 1.4 | 0.1 | 1.6 | 3.8 | 14.7 | 108 | 109 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 4/24/2015.
| Season | G | GS | FGA | FG% | 3PA | 3P% | FTA | FT% | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | TOV | PF | PTS | ORtg | DRtg | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-15 | 23 | 7 | 14.5 | .431 | 2.4 | .423 | 2.6 | .655 | 8.8 | 3.4 | 1.4 | 0.7 | 1.4 | 2.4 | 15.2 | 105 | 108 |
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 4/24/2015.
Butler’s per 100 numbers are on top, Prince’s are the lower table. He played in far less minutes for Detroit since he didn’t arrive until from the Boston Celtics in a trade on Feb. 23. Prince clearly made the most of his fewer minutes however, beating out Carter in every category except free-throw shooting and offensive rating.
Prince may not be an every-day starter any more, but he’s shown he can still be a solid enough role player at this stage in his career. His three-point percentage was really good, and he lead the Pistons in long-range shooting this season. Fittingly enough, Butler came in second.
He got a B- because I felt like he was better than Butler, but not significantly better. So I gave him the next highest grade. C’est la vie.
Next: 50 Greatest NBA Players Without a Championship
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