Detroit Pistons: 3 players who are key to success in 2019-20
By Tyler Lucas
The Detroit Pistons are used to getting production out of their stars, but they will need key role players to step up this year in order to move forward.
The Detroit Pistons are in an interesting position for the upcoming 2019-20 season. After finishing last season 41-41 and getting swept out of the first round of the playoffs as an eight seed, the team will be looking for more out of their role players in order to help their stars succeed.
Last season’s Pistons had an up-and-down season, to say the least. The Pistons opened last season to the tune of a four-game win streak and a 13-7 record through 20 games, meeting, and possibly even surpassing, the expectations of most every Piston fan.
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From there, however, things started to level out for the squad. The Pistons would go on to have a season that consisted of an unusually high number of both runs and deficits, making it hard for them to gain any real traction in terms of a playoff positioning race. Just when it seemed like the team was poised to go on a deep run and really take control of their own destiny, they would slide into a losing streak; halting their progress and making it impossible for them to ease their way into the playoffs.
Despite Herculean efforts from the likes of Blake Griffin and Andre Drummond, the Pistons finished their season at just .500 with a 41-41 record, claiming the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference. While making the playoffs at all was a step in the right direction for the team (only their second playoff appearance in 10 years) , it was clear that the team had a long way to go before making the leap to contender in the Eastern Conference.
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It goes without saying that the team will once gain need huge seasons out of their stars like Griffin and Drummond, who together carried the team through the regular season and into the playoffs. Another healthy season out of Reggie Jackson will be crucial to the team’s success as well.
Jackson avoiding another injury-ridden season and building more chemistry and cohesion with the two aforementioned players and the rest of the squad is critical to maintaining a winning program for the Pistons. Aside from the Pistons “big three”, though, as was clear to see last season, the Pistons are going to need some of their role players to step up big time and deliver some much-needed assistance throughout the year.
In this article I will be highlighting three key role players who will have to bring more to the table this season if the Pistons want to make the push to be a contender in the East. These three players may not be the stars of the team, but they will all be heavily involved in head coach Dwayne Casey’s game plan, and need to step up and deliver more this year in order to propel the team in the right direction.