The Detroit Pistons are riddled with injuries but at least they got to see what they have in Luke Kennard and Bruce Brown Jr. as a backcourt and early signs have been extremely positive.
Let me get this out of the way. Luke Kennard and Bruce Brown are not ready to lead a winning team. But they’re not supposed to do that either. Blake Griffin is coming back soon, hopefully at full health, and he’ll be the leader of the Detroit Pistons.
No one knows what the starting lineup will look like after Griffin’s return, probably not even Dwane Casey. And no one knows if Kennard and Brown will continue to share as much time together as they have in the last few games.
But the absence of all of the Pistons point guards allowed us to have a glimpse into the future and observe how well Kennard and Brown operate together. The opposition hasn’t been of high caliber but they’ve shown potential for even better play.
They don’t need to be a starting backcourt now but counting on them to become one in the future, even as soon as next year, has quickly become significantly less risky. They both have limitations on their game but could get to a point where they are elite at the things they do best.
And together they can be more than the sum of their skills. One makes the other better and covers for their flaws. They’re also the same age, both 23, which gives them time to develop together and build chemistry as they reach their prime.
More importantly, they play the right way. They are high IQ players that already have good habits on both ends. They’re not ball hoggers or lazy and under Griffin’s veteran leadership and Casey’s tutelage they can develop even more than we can imagine right now.
Let’s go to the tape and look into how well they complement each other.