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Who the Detroit Pistons should have taken in every draft since Darko Milicic

By Aaron Kellerstrass

Detroit Pistons Darko Milicic. (Photo by Allen Einstein/NBAE/Getty Images)
Detroit Pistons Darko Milicic. (Photo by Allen Einstein/NBAE/Getty Images) /
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Milwaukee Bucks Giannis Antetokounmpo. (Photo by Brian Sevald/NBAE via Getty Images) /

2013-2015: The MVP, The Joker and The Scorer

2013

Who they drafted: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (8), Tony Mitchell (37), Peyton Siva (56)

Who they should have drafted: Giannis Antetokounmpo, James Ennis III, Robert Covington

Notable misses: CJ McCollum, Rudy Gobert, Steven Adams, Seth Curry, Troy Daniels, Matthew Dellavedova

After one good draft the Pistons promptly returned to the norm and screwed up this pick horribly. KCP is not terrible, but the current MVP of the league was on the board, as was CJ McCollum and Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert. This was another case of the Pistons going for the solid rotational player rather than taking a chance on a guy like Giannis. The Pistons are not a free agent destination, so superstars are only coming via draft or trade. The Bucks swung for the fences and it paid off. The Pistons need to take more chances in the draft on high ceiling low floor players and quit taking guys who are solid, safe and mediocre.

pistons history. Ten years of Detroit Pistons basketball reviewed. light

2014

Who they drafted: Spencer Dinwiddie (38)

Who they should have drafted: Nikola Jokic

Ho hum, another draft, another Pistons’ miss on a generational talent. Every team missed on Jokic, so I won’t kill the Pistons for that one. Dinwiddie falls into the same camp as Middleton, a good pick who the Pistons traded away for nothing only to watch him thrive on another team. Detroit has not only drafted poorly but failed to recognize or develop the talent they did have. This is how you get trapped as perpetual eight seed.

2015

Who they drafted: Stanley Johnson (8), Darrun Hilliard (38)

Who they should have drafted: Devin Booker, Norman Powell

Notable Misses: Justise Winslow

This ended up being a fairly weak draft that was rumored to come down to Stanley Johnson and Winslow, and most people were shocked when Detroit didn’t take Winslow. But Booker was the real miss, as Detroit continues to need shooting and Booker has become one of the best scorers in the league.