Detroit Pistons: 3 reasons to be excited for 2018-19 season

1. Developing young talent

Kennard can be the NBA’s next great shooter. Detroit traded for Khyri Thomas and drafted Bruce Brown Jr. Stanley Johnson still has high upside if he can put it all together. While this team has older more established talent, this season should focus more on developing young talent too. It’s possible for this team to still make the playoffs in the East, but that shouldn’t be the main goal.

Kennard can be a 50-40-90 club member before his career is over. He has a quick trigger from deep and a sweet shooting stroke. Casey’s offense will help generate more open looks for Kennard, which should only increase his shot percentages. Johnson’s athleticism will always keep him relevant. Although he may not be the 3-and-D wing he was drafted to be, he can increase his slashing ability and his defense.

Thomas can be the team’s 3-and-D marksman from the bench. He shot 40.6 percent from 3-point range in college. His length allowed him to match up against larger wings, while consistently increasing his steals average every season.

Brown looks poised to be a defensive stopper for the course of his career. In his sophomore season, his shooting numbers regressed across the board. If he’s able to regain his line of .459/.347/.744 from his freshman year, then things could be different.

Next: Complete 2018 NBA Draft grades for all 30 teams

This season is about more than winning games. It’s about developing talent for the future. Super-teams saturate the NBA and the Pistons are capped out bad contracts. If they focus on those young players now, they will be a really scary team in a couple years.