3 New Year’s Resolutions for the Detroit Pistons
With both a brand new year and a brand new decade here in the NBA, the Detroit Pistons should have a few New Year’s Resolutions.
After a mostly miserable start to the 2019-2020 season the Detroit Pistons are hoping 2020 will finally bring some hope to Detroit. The new year brings with it new life and new opportunities, and for many it is a good time to reflect on ways to improve and to set goals to attack with renewed focus.
After a decade of irrelevance the Pistons are nearing a low-point for the franchise and need to take a hard look in the mirror. Here are three New Year’s resolutions the Pistons should pledge to adhere to over the coming months.
I will not play Blake Griffin until he is healthy
It doesn’t take a medical degree or advanced basketball expertise to see that Blake Griffin is not healthy. He is moving slowly, often with a limp, has no lift around the rim, and even his three-point shots are flat due to a leg that is clearly not fully recovered. Griffin has career low numbers in just about everything, shooting an abysmal 24.3 percent from three-point range and 35.2 percent overall and scoring just 15.5 points per game.
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His PER is nearly twenty points below his career average and even a casual fan could use the eye test to conclude that Griffin just isn’t right. With a long injury history Griffin is unlikely to ever be 100 percent again but the Pistons should sit him until he is close. There are several reasons this resolution makes sense:
- Playing a clearly injured Griffin increases the chances of further, more serious injury.
- Griffin’s trade value has plummeted in the last months so much that the Pistons would probably have to attach an asset to move his albatross of a contract. Getting him healthy and playing well this season or next is the only way the Pistons will ever get any value in a trade.
- He is not helping the team win games. Griffin has arguably been one of the worst Pistons in the 18 games he has played, with -0.1 win shares. Playing Griffin in this condition is not only hurting him, but also the team.