Grading Blake Griffin and the Detroit Pistons starters
To grade the rest of the starters for the Detroit Pistons, we’ll use the most likely starting lineup for a normal game with everybody healthy. That means Blake Griffin, Delon Wright, Wayne Ellington and Mason Plumlee.
It’s only fitting that Griffin is the first starter we’ll grade here.
Blake Griffin – D
Whether you want to give Blake Griffin a D, a D- or an F, it’s kind of irrelevant. He’s been mostly bad and the Pistons are a whole lot better when he’s off the floor than on it (-6.3 net rating when on, -2.4 net rating when off). The only thing saving him from an easy F is that his play so far has been pretty close to exactly what I expected from him this season.
Delon Wright – D
So far this season Delon Wright has been as close to “just a guy on the floor” as you can be. Whether he’s with the starters or the reserves, Wright is nearly invisible most of the time. In the 18 games he’s played, he’s scored single-digits 10 times. Invisible doesn’t get it done in the NBA.
Wayne Ellington – B+
Wayne Ellington might be a one-trick pony, but he does that one trick better than almost anybody in the league. He’s shot the cover off the ball, making 34 of his 68 3-point attempts. He doesn’t do a whole lot more than that, but his play will boost his trade value through the roof if he can keep this up.
Mason Plumlee – D+
Mason Plumlee has had some nice moments this season and he leads the team in rebounding with 8.5 per game, and his 3.3 assists are a respectable mark. On the other hand, he has fouled out of a hilarious four straight games and five of his past seven. He was signed in the offseason ostensibly for what he brings to the Pistons culture, and it’s a good thing they collectively have that reasoning to fall back on.