Thanks to Casey, there’s something different about these Detroit Pistons

They may not be title contenders, and they’re far from perfect. But thanks to Dwane Casey, there’s something different about these Detroit Pistons.

It happened once again to the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday night.

There they were, playing a sloppy and too-close-for-comfort game against the New York Knicks. A contest that, surely, they would’ve dropped in embarrassing fashion in year’s past.

But like they’ve done against Chicago, Cleveland (twice), and Atlanta, the Pistons were able to take care of business and stave off the weaker opponent.

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before.

Oh wait. Until this season (and for the better part of the last ten years) you really hadn’t.

Ladies and gentleman, there’s something different about these Pistons.

At the top

There are many reasons for Detroit’s strong start out of the gate. But I’d like to use the old adage, “it starts at the top.” And with all due respect to Tom Gores and Ed Stefanski, it starts with Dwane Casey.

Casey’s arrival has brought plenty of positive changes, both schematically, philosophically, and mentally.

The Pistons are shooting 34.3 triples per game, up from their season average of 28.9 last year. While their 3-point shots haven’t fallen at a respectable rate (32.6 percent, 26th overall) the emphasis of modernity is a step in the right direction.

Their offensive rating of 108.5 points scored per 100 possessions is also up from last year (106.5). Detroit ranks 12th in points per game, averaging 111.8. That’s an eight-point increase from 2017-18 when they averaged just 103.8 PPG.

This sudden influx of scoring hasn’t diminished the Pistons’ defense either. They’re allowing just 107.4 points per 100 possessions to round out the top 10 in that category.

Per Synergy, the Pistons are allowing just 0.944 points per possession (PPP) on spot-up field-goal attempts. That’s the fourth-lowest PPP in the NBA, which suggests that their days of struggling to close out on open shooters are over.

Detroit is also holding opponents to just 32.3 percent from behind the arc. Only the Denver Nuggets and Boston Celtics are better at defending 3-point shots.

Attitude adjustment

But perhaps the most noticeable change has been Detroit’s mentality. They’ve shown noticeably more fight compared to previous seasons. I don’t have a statistic to prove that, as you really can’t measure effort.

However, if you’ve watched this team religiously (and you probably have since you’re reading this), you can tell by the players’ body language that the attitude on this club is a breath of fresh air.

Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press noticed the difference between Casey and Van Gundy during the Pistons’ preseason opener back in October. Although he himself can get animated, Dwane Casey’s calm demeanor in the wake of adversity is apparent on the sideline.

Ellis also reported that Casey is well-respected at calling ATOs (plays after an offensive timeout). That’s evident by Blake Griffin‘s game-tying layup over the Philadelphia 76ers on Oct. 23.

Reggie Bullock in-bounded the ball to Griffin, who then faked a dribble hand-off to Bullock. This caused 76ers’ center Amir Johnson to change his direction for a split-second. Griffin then drove between Johnson and Joel Embiid on his way to the cup.

Casey ran that same in-bounds play with the Toronto Raptors, as you can see from the video above.

The best of both worlds

To be clear, the 61-year-old head coach isn’t the sole reason the Detroit Pistons are 11-7.

After all, Griffin is playing like an MVP candidate, averaging 25.1 points, 9.6 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game on 46.5 percent shooting.

Andre Drummond is his usual self on the glass, leading the NBA in rebounds per game with an average of 16.0. He’s also trying to reinvent himself offensively, which is the first step towards improvement.

Reserves such as Langston Galloway and Bruce Brown have thrived in their new-found roles. I could go on, but you get the point.

Yet it all comes back to Dwane Casey. He was brought in to do what Michael Curry, John Kuester, Lawrence Frank, Maurice Cheeks and Stan Van Gundy could not.

While were still a long ways away from talking playoffs or anything like that, you have to like what he’s done so far just 18 games into his tenure.

So yeah, there is something different about these Detroit Pistons.

Only this time, it’s something worth rooting for.