With the Detroit Pistons officially adopting the direction of a rebuild, they need to hit a home run with their upcoming draft pick.
It may sound obvious to say that the Detroit Pistons need to make a reliable selection in the upcoming 2020 NBA Draft, but it’s true.
The issue they’ll arrive at is the simple fact that the pool of players they’ll be selecting from is currently pretty underwhelming.
A lot of people have pointed out that we seem to say every year that the current draft class is lackluster, which is true to an extent, but not totally.
Last year for example was easy enough for people to assume the top three picks in order. Everyone knew that Zion Williamson, Ja Morant, and RJ Barrett would be selected in succession. Beyond that however, no one knew exactly how it’d shake out.
This was because seemingly everyone beyond the top three could be considered a coin flip, but not in the regard that we questioned how talented they were. It was more so a matter of how much they’d impact their respective teams on day one.
We knew how talented the class could potentially be, it was always just a matter of where each player wound up that mattered the most.
This year however, things don’t feel as hopeful. The top five picks are interchangeable depending on who’s selecting where. There’s no surefire first, second, or even third overall pick.
You can look at the mid to late lottery projected players and beyond as coin flips. This year it is in the regard that you question how their games will translate to the NBA.
Because of this, the Pistons find themselves in a difficult position. With their season going completely south, they’re going to end up with a quality draft pick. According to tankathon.com, they currently have the sixth best odds at the number one overall pick at 9.0 percent.
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No matter where Detroit makes their selection, the odds are that they’re going to select a point guard. Not just because they’re going to need one moving forward, but because this draft class is overflowing with them.
The fact that there are so many obviously means there’s a more of them to potentially select, which is great. However, this also opens up the possibility and increases the chances that any team, not just the Pistons could totally strike out.
One can certainly imagine a world in which most teams find themselves unlucky on draft night this year.
Detroit currently only owns one draft pick this season, which is their first rounder. This could very well change on draft night, however as it stands they’ll only have one shot at drafting a key part of their future.
With the current front office in place for the Pistons, fans should feel relatively optimistic. Drafting Sekou Doumbouya a season ago has gone down as one of the bigger steals of the entire draft.
When talking about what players Detroit could draft in order to avoid “striking out”, you look at guys like Killian Hayes, Obi Toppin, Tyrese Haliburton, and Anthony Edwards. All four of them have a legitimate shot at producing day one in the NBA.
They all also have a chance at being selected by the Pistons.