Revisiting our preseason Pistons predictions

The funny part about preseason predictions is that they sometimes fade away as the Pistons’ season progresses — traditionally downwards.

Unfortunately, we’re about to dig up a bit of preseason banter. Here’s a look at how the PistonPowered thought the Pistons would fare this season. You can read the entire post on expectations here, but this is the staff view on where the Pistons would fall. Some of us were accurate, some were not.

Nobody looked really stupid, so there’s that.

In case you live under a rock: Detroit went 44-38 and finished as the No. 8 team in the Eastern Conference.

"Braden Shackelford: The Pistons are going to fight for the final playoff spot in the East. The Pistons are talented, but they are also a young team which leads me to believe that a finish somewhere between No. 8-10 in Eastern Conference. That is about the expectation.Brady Fredricksen: Detroit will be the eighth seed. It seems like the magic number to make the playoffs in the East has been somewhere between 38-40 wins recently. That’s a realistic goal for a team that, on paper, is going to enter the season in much better shape functionally than past years. Especially when you consider their nightmare 5-23 start is, I’m 97 percent sure, not going to be repeated.Tim Thielke: No. 9 and I can’t give much of a why. This team is a lot harder to predict than most of the recent editions. They could easily be three places higher or lower and I wouldn’t bat an eye.Duncan Smith: I expect the Pistons to finish just outside the playoffs, in ninth or tenth. While the Pistons improved, the rest of the Eastern Conference did as well. Sneaking into the Eastern Conference playoffs with a losing or near-losing record is no longer a viable possibility.Mike Davidson: I think they’ll wind up as the 7th seed. I see Detroit and either Boston or Milwaukee filling the final two spots in the East. Although Boston and Milwaukee figure to be much improved, I think the Pistons will be better with a lineup that suits Van Gundy’s system perfectly — they seem to have developed a good chemistry over the course of the offseason.DeMarcus Garrett: No. 9. In the East, the Pistons are a fringe playoff team. After his first full offseason, Van Gundy has finally put together a roster that is constructed in the image of his preferred playing style. It will take time for all of the new parts to meld, and with their early season schedule, expect the Pistons to stumble out of the gate and narrowly miss the playoffs while playing catch-up.Tim Brokke: Just outside of the 8th seed. There are just too many questions for me to put them above the other teams fighting for the bottom playoff spots. While my inner-optimism hopes they can squeeze in, my realistic thinking says no.Chris Crowder: The Pistons will finish eighth in the Eastern Conference. The new additions of Marcus Morris, Ersan Ilyasova and Stanley Johnson will only make the young core of Drummond, Jackson and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope play more efficient basketball. If the team stays healthy with a quick return from Brandon Jennings, they’ll squeak past the Celtics to play the Cavaliers in the first round.Ricky LaBlue: The Pistons will finish fourth in the Eastern Conference thanks to an improved offense and the projected growth defensively from Drummond. With a shooter playing power forward, the offense will flow much better than it did last season.Anthony Morgan: The Pistons finish ninth. I believe there are seven teams in the East that are levels ahead of where the Pistons are, and that leaves one final position for them to make the playoffs. I think either the Celtics or Pacers will beat them to that final spot, but I also think it will only come down to a game or two."

You can probably find your comment prediction in that hyperlink above, if that’s your thing.