How the Detroit Pistons can achieve a 50-win season

The Detroit Pistons haven’t had a 50-win season in over a decade. If last year was any indication, this year could be the year that changes.

Take a deep breath. Ambitions may be running large here, but the belief that the Detroit Pistons could win 50 games next season is not as inconceivable as it may sound.

In the 2018-2019 season, Detroit ended the season with a dead even 41-41 record. It’s worth noting that 14 of those 41 losses (34.1 percent) came by five points or less. Now, that in itself is not indicative of what the Pistons could have achieved in terms of wins. However, when you dive into the analytics of those losses, what we find may surprise you.

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The Pistons in those fourteen losses were at a disadvantage in several categories. One of which, was opponents out shooting Detroit by a field goal percentage of 46.3 percent to 42.9 percent. Another, the turnover battle. The Pistons turned the ball over 14.8 times compared to 13.3 by their adversaries.

However, there were also some things Detroit beat their opponents out in as well. Boasting 34.5 percent from three-point range compared to 33.2 percent, while it may seem like a razor thin margin, remember that these losses were coming within five points, so the importance of hitting just one more three cannot be overstated in this instance.

Also holding a rebounding advantage of 55.3 to 53.8, it’s clear Detroit may lose on the scoreboard, but they won’t lose at their own game, as the Pistons are seldom out-rebounded.

The point of the figures above is simple; they’re a lot closer to winning than you may realize.

With any franchise, your success will be heavily contingent on the health of your entire team. If there’s any team that knows that better than anyone else, look no further than Detroit, as they suffered a brutal 8-18 stretch during the absence of Ish Smith.

With Ish now gone, the Pistons are looking at Derrick Rose to fill that backup point guard role. Though it’s no secret that Derrick has had his injuries in the past, it has never been more important to manage his minutes as meticulously as you possibly can in order to maximize his durability throughout the season.

This may mean Tim Frazier could conceivably see more minutes than some fans may expect, as Derrick could possibly be on a 17-20 minute restriction during certain parts of the season.

The maximization of your wing usage is a part of today’s NBA. It’s important for Detroit to create as many open looks as they can for Luke Kennard, Langston Galloway, Tony Snell, and even Sekou Doumbouya. This will ideally create that ever so slight increase in the field goal percentage that Detroit lacked in those 14 losses.

What is also important to remember is the emergence of Reggie Jackson after last seasons All Star break. Reggie quickly became the upgrade at point guard that so many fans had yearned for. If we get that iteration of Reggie, alongside Andre Drummond and a healthy Blake Griffin, trouble will be made in the Eastern Conference.

It sounds simple. It sounds crazy. It sounds like something that could happen. The Detroit Pistons could very well be on their way to a 50 win season if the dominoes start to fall for them. After all, in totality they weren’t all that far off just a season ago.

The Detroit Pistons are coming for the NBA.