Detroit Pistons: Best Move They Did And Didn’t Make

The Detroit Pistons took advantage of their last large cap summer by signing a number of players to new contracts. What was the best move they made? What move could have been better?

If NBA teams had their way, rebuilds would happen overnight. Free agent signings would fit seamlessly, draft picks would develop quickly, players would age slowly.

Windows of contention would be opened early and never closed. Hard work would pay off in a team that was always successful.

But in the real NBA, teams don’t have perfect offseasons. Players leave their team to sign elsewhere, rookies don’t pan out, free agents need time to learn a new system and adjust to new teammates.

The positive moves are intermingled with the negative, and opportunities seized are balanced by opportunities missed.

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The Detroit Pistons live in the same NBA as everyone else, and today we look at their offseason. After making the step up into the playoffs, was this an offseason of excellent moves? Or did they miss out on opportunities elsewhere?

Best Move They Made: Signing Andre Drummond to a Max Contract

Andre Drummond was the best player signed by the Pistons this offseason, putting his name on a five-year maximum contract to stay in Detroit.

It’s true that the system in place makes such moves a near inevitability, but even so this was a move that will define the Pistons for the next half-decade.

Drummond led the league in rebounds last season, after finishing second the two seasons prior. No one is even close to Drummond when it comes to swallowing up offensive rebounds.

DeAndre Jordan snags the second-most offensive boards and he is closer to Kosta Koufos in 26th than Drummond in first.

The 6’11” center out of UConn has grown to be a monster in the pick-and-roll, and Detroit revolved their offense around such plays. Reggie Jackson ranked second in the league in frequency of plays he ran that were pick-and-rolls, and his most common partner was Drummond.

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This allowed coach Stan Van Gundy to surround that action with shooters at the other three positions. Defenses struggled to contain the simple setup. Collapse to the center barreling towards the hoop, leave shooters open on the outside.

Stay home, and watch Drummond throw down the alley oop. Detroit’s offense wasn’t high-octane, but Drummond’s ability near the hoop allowed a team without a lot of offensive talent score efficiently.

The 23-year old is still growing into his prime, and has steps to take on defense. While he is long and athletic, he often struggles to rotate at the right time to seal off the basket without wildly chasing blocks.

Too early, and the player passes around him; too late, and he’s leaping for a goal tend or a foul. With his physical gifts Drummond should be top-10 in the league in blocks per game; last season he hovered outside of top-20.

The timing of Drummond’s contract was also a great move for Detroit. Following the lead of teams such as last year’s Spurs with Kawhi Leonard, the Pistons and Drummond waited until free agency this year to sign a contract.

Because Drummond’s cap hold was significantly smaller than his starting salary as a max player, Detroit was able to use the difference to sign free agents before inking Drummond and moving over the cap.

Andre Drummond is the best player on the Detroit Pistons, and will most likely remain as such for the life of his contract. Detroit has to make the right moves and develop players around him, but locking in one of the league’s best centers was their best move this offseason, expected or not.

Best Move They Didn’t Make: Finding a Solid Backup Point Guard

Entering the offseason, the Pistons had three priorities. Ink Drummond to a max contract, add shooting and find a backup point guard.

Last season, Brandon Jennings worked his way back from injury in time to be traded and veteran Steve Blake was rarely effective in any capacity running the second unit.

With Drummond delaying his signing of a new deal, Detroit had a window of both cap space and time to meet those needs. Jon Leuer was a perfect fit for this team, a stretch-big with the versatility to play at the 4 or 5. But the Pistons’ solution to their other need was less than perfect.

Ish Smith experienced a breakout year of sorts last season, filling in for the injury-riddled New Orleans Pelicans before “starring” as the only competent point guard on the Philadelphia 76ers.

Even with inconsistent playing time, Smith ranked seventh at his position in assists per game, flashing playmaking skills alongside his scoring ability.

But behind the shine of 20-point nights or highlight-reel assists, Smith was not a very good player last season. He was inefficient when he tried to score, shooting only 41 percent from the field and 69 percent from the free throw line, the latter an exceptionally low mark for a point guard.

The advanced metrics all rated him as a below-average player, from Box Plus-Minus to PER.

Smith is 28, and unlikely to develop much further. In Van Gundy’s system, it is possible that he shines, fitting into the perfect role off the bench.

But more likely Smith wastes possessions on turnovers and missed shots, and when he is fouled only adds to the free throw shooting issues plaguing this entire team.

The point guard market was thin, but Detroit needed to do everything they could to find a viable option behind Reggie Jackson.

Jeremy Lin may have been set on a reunion in Brooklyn with former coach Kenny Atkinson, with a chance to start, but throwing money at Lin could have been an option.

Jordan Clarkson agreed to a deal early with the Los Angeles Lakers for less than his market value; he could have been a valuable addition to a Detroit backcourt needing playmaking and shooting.

Able to play both positions, Clarkson could have been part of a three-headed guard rotation for Detroit. The Lakers may have matched, but it would have been a shot at someone better already than Ish Smith.

In the end, having a slightly subpar backup point guard won’t cripple this team. When the games truly matter Reggie Jackson will play 40 minutes, and starting 2-guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope has some ball-handling skills he can flex.

But the ability to go 48 straight minutes with excellent playmaking is what differentiates the contenders from the mid-tier teams around them. Detroit will struggle to join that group with their current roster.

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But the future is bright for a Detroit team still on the rise, and new pieces will at least make the bench more exciting. If Smith or Leuer prove to be perfect fits, this team can reasonable expect to host a playoff series next spring.