3 reasons the Detroit Pistons will make the 2019 NBA Playoffs

3. Dwane Casey knows how to win

The Toronto Raptors fired Dwane Casey because he couldn’t get them over the hump that was LeBron James. Getting to the playoffs, however, was not a problem for the most successful head coach that franchise has ever had.

In six full seasons in Toronto, Casey guided the Raptors to the playoffs five times. They advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2016, and last season set a franchise record with 59 regular season wins. For his efforts, Casey was voted NBA Coach of the Year for 2017-18 — just weeks after he was let go.

In between Casey’s Toronto exit and the NBA Awards Show, the Pistons — who had fired coach/president Stan Van Gundy in May — swooped in and hired the best available coach on the market.

Casey has made it clear that his goal is to win now in Detroit, and that this isn’t a reconstruction project he expects to take several years. It’s not as if he needs a lot of time to adjust to his new surroundings. He wasn’t out of the game. He isn’t moving up to the NBA from college. He’s not moving up to head coach from an assistant position. He’s not even going to a different conference. He knows this landscape very well and has been very successful on it as recently as four months ago.

Casey’s winning pedigree and familiarity with the East are good reasons to believe he will steer his new team to the postseason in Year 1.