Detroit Pistons: 2018 NBA Draft grades
By KC Whitten
Overall
The Detroit Pistons entered the draft in desperate need of guard/wing players. With no first round pick, and a lack of tradeable assets to move up in the draft, their options were limited. Yet, I believe they came away with a steal in a trade with the 76ers for Khyri Thomas.
It’s true, second round players are long shots to make an NBA rotation. There are also second round picks that are stars in the NBA. DeAndre Jordan, Draymond Green, Isaiah Thomas and Marc Gasol are all great examples. Future Hall-of-Famer Manu Ginobili was also a second round pick.
I’m not saying Khyri Thomas is the next superstar NBA guard, but he possesses the potential. He also will be developed by a head coach in Dwane Casey who has experience turning guards into superstars. It’ll be interesting to see if Casey can transform the two young guards into stars, like he did with Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan in Toronto.
Obviously, this will not go down as the most memorable NBA Draft for the Pistons. However, for the cards they were dealt by Stan Van Gundy, I feel like they accomplished the most they could with a bad hand.
Next: Complete 2018 NBA Draft grades for all 30 teams
Final Grade: C+