Player grades from Pistons’ 112-106 loss to the Bulls

Frontcourt

Power Forwards

Markieff Morris D

After a promising game against Toronto, Morris was back to his old self, bricking everything, turning the ball over and making stupid mental mistakes. Morris got yet another ill-timed technical foul, which has been a theme this year, shot 1-for-6 from behind the arc, and ended the game with just 12 points in 32 minutes.

The Pistons have struggled to take care of the ball and Morris has been one of the biggest culprits, averaging 2.8 turnovers a game which is unacceptable from a veteran power forward who barely handles the ball. There’s no way to sugarcoat it, Morris has been bad. The Pistons have to hope that his play will improve when and if Griffin returns, but thus far he has been a big disappointment.

Christian Wood C+

Wood continues to be a spark off the bench and though he often makes mental errors on the defensive end, he at least plays with energy. He ended the game with nine points in just 15 minutes, including a nice drive to the rim for a three-point play, but also lost his man a few times on defense. He is a work in progress on that end and Casey clearly doesn’t trust him yet defensively.

At some point Casey is going to have to accept that nearly the entire team stinks defensively and at least Wood can score and plays with some intensity. With the Pistons not stopping anyone anyway, it might be time to unleash Wood for a full game to see what he can do. At this point the Pistons have nothing to lose.

Thon Maker D

I think Maker’s season can be defined by one play in the second half. Maker hustled after a loose ball and dove to the floor, showing great effort, but he didn’t get the ball and the Bulls promptly passed it to his man for a dunk while Maker lay prone on the floor. Ineffective effort is Maker’s calling card, and he showed it again against the Bulls, flailing and falling all over the place but ending the game with zero points.

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Centers

Andre Drummond B

Drummond recorded another 20-20 game, his third of the young season, with 25 points and 24 rebounds and for most of the game looked like the best player on the floor. The only thing keeping Drummond from consistent A’s is his turnovers. He coughed up another five and is averaging an absurd 4 turnovers per game through the first six.

Drummond has played like an All-NBA center this year, but the Pistons are asking him to do too much on offense, which has led to the huge spike in turnovers. Turnovers have been the bane of the Pistons’ existence and Drummond cannot continue to be so careless with the ball, but otherwise the Pistons couldn’t ask much more out of Contract Year Dre, who has been one of the few positives in an otherwise disappointing start.

It’s on to the next as the Pistons host the Brooklyn Nets Saturday night.