Detroit Pistons: 5 takeaways from the 2018-19 NBA season

2. Detroit needs more wing help

Competent wing play is so hard to find in the modern NBA. The Pistons had a good 3-and-D wing in Reggie Bullock, but they traded him and a former first round pick, Stanley Johnson, away at the deadline. That forced them to start Wayne Ellington, who, while a good 3-point shooter, isn’t the best two-way player. That showed when Giannis Antetokounmpo was romping to the rim on every possession in the playoffs.

This offseason, the Pistons need to add a player (or players) on the wing that can capably defend without being a total negative on the offensive end. Whether that’s via the draft, free agency or both, they have to get some help out there. It’s clearly Detroit’s worst position group, and it isn’t particularly close. Unfortunately, they don’t have any young, developmental pieces at that spot that they can rely on developing in the future.

In their draft range, there are a number of wings that could be instant boosts, such as Nassir Little, PJ Washington and Grant Williams. They need to get more help on the wings in any way, shape or form. Wing play is too important in the modern NBA, as evidenced by nearly all of the remaining teams having at least one great player on the wings. Detroit doesn’t have one, and that’s part of the reason it went home without a single playoff win.