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Simulating the Offseason for the Detroit Pistons

By Sham Mohile

Jun 23, 2016; New York, NY, USA; A general view of a video board displaying all thirty draft picks in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 23, 2016; New York, NY, USA; A general view of a video board displaying all thirty draft picks in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jun 23, 2016; New York, NY, USA; A general view of a video board displaying all thirty draft picks in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 23, 2016; New York, NY, USA; A general view of a video board displaying all thirty draft picks in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports /

NBA Draft

In the first year the Van Gundy-Bower era had a first round draft pick, the Pistons took a chance on Stanley Johnson, a strong defensive forward from Arizona. The Pistons received some backlash from the fans because of the success of a few of the prospects they passed on, namely Myles Turner and Devin Booker. In year two, they drafted later in the round but still managed to hit a home run drafting Henry Ellenson, a 7′ sharpshooter out of Marquette. Ellenson has been a D-League staple and should see some meaningful minutes within the next year or two.

Going into this draft, I had the mindset of drafting the best player available. If one of the top point guards fell to the number twelve spot, then I would pounce. Trading future picks was out of the question unless a player of top seven caliber (specifically Malik Monk) fell outside the top 10.

When the Timberwolves drafted Lauri Markkanen, I considered moving up to the Knicks spot to take Malik Monk but I held out for one more pick…

Sadly, Malik Monk got chosen with the 8th pick by the New York Knicks, but in what was otherwise a predictable first ten picks, the Charlotte Hornets decided to reach and take O.G. Anunoby instead of Justin Jackson, Zach Collins, or Donovan Mitchell leaving me with a very tough, but realistic decision to make at the number twelve spot.

In my opinion, the biggest hole that needs to be filled in the Pistons’ roster is the reserve shooting guard spot. Often when the bench unit was in, the offensive production would drop off considerably and prompted Stan Van Gundy to keep Tobias Harris, a starting-caliber player, on the bench to aid with that offensive production. Also, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope led the Pistons in minutes per game last year primarily because of that void in the roster.

It is for those reasons that I drafted sharpshooter, Luke Kennard, out of Duke University.

Kennard was the most efficient scorer left on the board and although he may struggle defensively, his offensive production and overall basketball IQ and savviness made me look past his defensive liabilities. My ideal lineup would be to pair him with Stanley Johnson and defensive specialist, Ish Smith, on the second unit to help hide him on defense. If Kennard can shoot at a 35 percent clip from beyond the arc his first season and show signs of progress, I will have considered my pick a success.

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