Players being mocked to the Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are doing their homework on the prospects entering the draft. While they sort through the prospects we take a look at what national pundits are projecting for the Pistons and their 18th overall pick.
What will the Detroit Pistons do with their first round pick? PistonPowered mocked Domantas Sabonis to the Pistons in its version 1.0, but what does the rest of the media think will happen?
Lets take a look:
"Wade Baldwin IV, 6-4, PG, Vanderbilt: They sorely need a backup point guard, and if they keep the pick, they would covet Baldwin’s size. They would love to get a shot at Demetrius Jackson or Domantas Sabonis if they are available. A trade is probably more likely, as adding another developing rookie to a young core isn’t the primary option."
Notable players still on the board: Tyler Ulis, Malik Beasley, Dejounte Murray, Patrick McCaw
Sam Vecenie of CBS has the Pistons trading down with the Celtics for the No. 23, 31 and 35 overall picks.
"Malachi Richardson, SG, Syracuse: TRADE: Malachi Richardson: The Pistons have good reason to make the aforementioned trade with the Celtics. This team has a massive need for depth outside of its starting lineup, and could use more draft picks to try and shore that up. This season, the Pistons got less points per game from its bench than any team in the NBA, and its bench shot worst out of any team in the NBA at only 41.2 percent. Here, the Pistons try to get a nice spark plug off the bench in Richardson, a long scoring wing who made a name for himself during Syracuse’s run to the Final Four."
Notable players still on the board: Patrick McGraw, Dejounte Murray
Demetrius Jackson, PG, Notre Dame
"The Pistons have a pretty solid young roster and could be a playoff team for several years to come, but they will need to add a backup PG. A three-year player out of Notre Dame, Jackson averaged 15.8 points, 4.7 assists, 3.5 boards, 1.2 steals and 1.5 3-pointers during his junior season and should be ready to help the Pistons out right away. Though he does lack size at just 6’1”, he is an impressive athlete and a capable 3-point shooter."
Notable players still on the board: Tyler Ulis, Malik Beasley, Malachi Richardson, Thon Maker
Derek Bodner, USA Today Sports:
Taurean Prince, SF, Baylor
"Prince’s ability to play both forward spots, and shoot from the perimeter, would give Stan Van Gundy another contributor to his emerging Pistons squad."
Notable players players still on the board: Furkan Korkmaz, Thon Maker
Review:
I don’t get the point in projecting trades, particularly at this point in the process like Nadar does with Yahoo!, but I really like the selection of Malachi Richardson. He’s an excellent scorer and can play multiple positions, though he would almost exclusively be playing shooting guard behind Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. I like Richardson’s upside and I think he would be a good player to groom in case Caldwell-Pope isn’t signed long-term.
The other pick that stood out to me was the selection of Taurean Prince by Bodner. I don’t think the Pistons would pass on Korkmaz, who can play any wing position, and his shooting would be a big plus off the bench.
As for the other mocks, I would be happy with Jackson or Baldwin IV, but I lean towards Baldwin IV due to his potential on both ends of the court. I know the Pistons don’t want to get any younger, but Baldwin IV is a player who is worth developing.