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Here’s why the Detroit Pistons should not hire Dwane Casey

By Joseph Sinke

AUBURN HILLS, MI - APRIL 05: Head coach Dwane Casey of the Toronto Raptors yells from the sideline as Jonas Valanciunas #17 of the Toronto Raptors runs by while playing the Detroit Pistons at the Palace of Auburn Hills on April 5, 2017 in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Toronto won the game 105-102. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
AUBURN HILLS, MI - APRIL 05: Head coach Dwane Casey of the Toronto Raptors yells from the sideline as Jonas Valanciunas #17 of the Toronto Raptors runs by while playing the Detroit Pistons at the Palace of Auburn Hills on April 5, 2017 in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Toronto won the game 105-102. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
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With the Pistons head coaching spot open a lot of people have turned to Dwane Casey as an option. Casey found a great deal of success with the Raptors over the last seven seasons, but that doesn’t mean he is a good fit for the Pistons.

Dwane Casey is a players coach

The main thing that everyone points too with Dwane Casey is that he is a players coach. More than one member of the Raptors has expressed a great deal of admiration for Casey in his time there. It is clear that the players in Toronto respected him and saw him as a real leader.

This is one thing that the Pistons could use with their next coach. However, there is some question as to how it would translate to another team.

A great deal of Toronto’s roster got their first shots and/or found their first success with Casey as the coach. Two that especially come to mind are Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan.

Dwane Casey
CLEVELAND, OH – MAY 7: Kyle Lowry #7 and DeMar DeRozan #10 of the Toronto Raptors wait for a free-throw during the second half of Game 4 of the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena on May 7, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavaliers defeated the Raptors 128-93. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /

Remember that this Raptors team was never supposed to be good, they became good on accident. Both Lowry and DeRozan give Casey a lot of credit for putting the team in their hands when no one (including most of the organization itself) really believed in them.

If Casey moves to a team where he is not the guy who gave everyone their first shot, would they still hold the same respect and love for him? If that did not translate to a team full of veterans who are already established then Casey would be bringing very little to the table.

Casey is a bad Xs, and Os, coach

The Raptors won a lot of regular season games under Dwane Casey. Including the first two years of his tenure when they struggled, he went 320-238 in his time in Toronto which is a really good record.

The Raptors consistently fell apart in the playoffs largely due to his flaws as a strategist.

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Even in the regular season, the flaws were often obvious. The Raptors consistently ranked at the bottom of the NBA in passes per game as their offense largely was giving the ball to Lowry or DeRozan and hoping they score.

The offense was revamped at the behest of Masai Ujiri and under the tutelage of Nick Nurse, but Casey has been the first to say that he was not at the center of that change.

Simply put, the Raptors played the most basic and simple forms of basketball on both ends of the floor while Casey was the coach.

The biggest success Casey can really cling to as a coach is that under his tenure both Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan became all-star level players who allowed their super-simplified system to work.

Here is the worry from that. The Pistons have such a roster that simply rolling the balls out and letting their guys play is not as appealing.

The Pistons have the right amount of offensive talent (when healthy) that they could be an elite offensive unit next year. They will need a coach who can put in the right strategies to keep players away from their worst tendencies while expanding their good ones.

There is a good chance that a Casey offense with the Pistons results in even more Andre Drummond post-ups. It will result in more Blake Griffin loitering and doing nothing when he doesn’t have the ball. We can’t forget more Reggie Jackson hero-ball.

It will result in an offense where those things become a reality. That could quickly become a disaster despite the solid talent for that end of the court.

On the other side of the ball, the outlook would be less grim. Casey prefers a super conservative scheme that would probably be less effective. Say goodbye to Andre Drummond smothering pick and rolls beyond the three-point line, but the drop-off there is less scary.

The Pistons could still do worse than Casey:

There would be some comfort by bringing in a guy who is a proven professional and respected coach despite some question as to how this roster would respond to Casey. The Pistons could certainly do worse than Casey, but the reality is that the Pistons just got rid of Stan Van Gundy.

Van Gundy was/is a proven professional and respected coach but often fell short as a strategist. My fear is that Casey would not just be a horizontal move for the Pistons, it would be a worse version of Van Gundy.

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