The Detroit Pistons will need to rely on internal development if the team hopes to reach a truly competitive status next season. The irony? That’s the one area the team has struggled under Stan Van Gundy.
The Detroit Pistons have drafted Stanley Johnson, Henry Ellenson, and Luke Kennard in the first round under Stan Van Gundy.
Stanley Johnson has had a roller coaster career thus far, but looks to have finally development into a consistent role player/starter.
Henry Ellenson has been in the NBA nearly three seasons and hardly played at all, and Luke Kennard, while looking spectacular at times, has been given the Van Gundy treatment* throughout his rookie season. (*Inexplicably bench rookie/young player for multiple games throughout various points in the season).
And now, with the financial landscape being what it is for the Pistons, the team must lean on the development of its young players, along with the health of its core, to reach the contending status it has so desperately coveted.
The good news is this team doesn’t need any of the aforementioned players to be stars.
The Pistons have that in Andre Drummond, Blake Griffin, and Reggie Jackson (when healthy).
The Pistons also have a budding role player and sharp shooter in Reggie Bullock, one player that has certainly grown under Stan Van Gundy.
However, if the Pistons truly want to contend, the flashes we’ve seen from Kennard, Johnson, and even Ellenson, needs to translate into consistent production for the Pistons next season, especially if Van Gundy wants an extension on his contract.
I think consistent production for each player, particularly Kennard and Johnson, is a reasonable expectation for these players next season, but they will also need consistent minutes.
Next: Detroit Pistons: What is Andre Drummond’s ceiling?
While I think consistency, and in turn, development is certainly within the realm of possibility next season, I’m still skeptical as to whether the young players will achieve this level of success under Van Gundy, though I am hopeful.