Detroit Pistons: 5 reasons Dwane Casey will lead them to the playoffs in 2019
By KC Whitten
3. Talent development
Dwane Casey is excellent at developing young players and turning them into All-Stars. Earlier this week, I outlined how Casey changed the careers of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan. However, Casey’s development and leadership of the entire Raptors roster can’t be understated.
Entering the 2017-18 season, no one predicted the Raptors would finish first in the Eastern Conference. In fact, Sports Illustrated had the Raptors finishing fifth. One of the keys to their success this past season was Casey’s development of the bench.
The Raptors finished with the seventh-highest scoring bench in the Eastern Conference in 2016-17. Casey developed the second, and the Raptors’ second unit was No. 1 in the NBA in 2017-18. The second unit contributed 41.2 points per game, an increase of 10 points per game over 2016-17.
Point guard Fred VanVleet, the leader of the Raptors bench, experienced a breakout season under Casey’s leadership. Entering the league in 2016 as an undrafted free agent, VanVleet averaged 8.6 points and 3.2 assists per game. Casey was also able to rely on VanVleet in the playoffs, playing him 19 minutes per game.
Casey will improve the Pistons’ starters and bench players, both of which finished near the bottom of the East statistically last season.