Pistons: 3 players poised for a breakout season in Detroit
By Duncan Smith
Pistons poised for a breakout season: 2. Hamidou Diallo
The Pistons let the restricted free agency process play out with Hamidou Diallo, and they came out the big winners. It was an offseason where not many teams had cap space, and virtually nobody had cap space with which to speculate on a player like Diallo.
He was acquired from the OKC Thunder at the trade deadline, essentially to facilitate his re-signing, and retaining him on a two-year, $10.4 million deal with a team option was a success for general manager Troy Weaver. Now, on a team looking to assert itself as a competitive force, Diallo will have the opportunity to flourish with playing time and a talented young core.
He had a breakout shooting stretch when he arrived in Detroit, hitting 16 of 41 3-pointers, good for a 39.0 percent clip. Mind you, over the previous 41 attempts, he hit 12, which yields a mere 29.3 percent clip.
We’ll see if his 3-point shooting improves and is more like the latter stretch than the former, but he has the physical and athletic tools to be a serious contributor next season for the Detroit Pistons.