The Detroit Pistons had a relatively productive first offseason under their new General Manager.
It goes without say that there were some bumps in the road throughout Troy Weaver’s first offseason with the Detroit Pistons. Most of those bumps were jokes made at Detroit’s expense given the sheer number of big men they were accumulating.
However, when you ask fans what they thought of the dozen or so major moves that were made, the reception is generally positive. While some people still may not agree with the Bruce Brown trade, the good has largely outweighed the bad.
So, what made this offseason so productive?
The Pistons made a sizeable splash in the 2020 NBA Draft, coming away with three first round picks, all of whom are regarded near the top of the class respective to their positions. However, this wasn’t it.
Every single move that was made pointed to the obvious. Detroit was constructing a roster that would allow them to stay semi-competitive while still focusing on development and the future of the franchise.
Still, that’s not it either.
It’s exactly the way that they constructed said roster that should ignite some excitement. Maybe you aren’t entirely fond of some of the names that were brought on board, but one thing sticks out:
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This team looks healthy.
(At least) On paper, the Pistons have finally constructed a roster that isn’t irrevocably dependent on their ability to stay healthy, while also bringing in players who have an outstanding track record of getting injured.
Blake Griffin and Derrick Rose are still on the team, but Rose never dealt with any serious last season and was largely available whenever he was needed.
In Griffin’s case, he’s shown on several occasions that he’s able to bounce back from injuries with no problem. By all accounts we’ve heard so far that he looks as good as he did in 2018-2019.
Even if neither of them are able to stay healthy, that’s okay! All it does is free up more minutes for some of the younger players like Saben Lee or Sekou Doumbouya to get even more time in the rotation.
Additionally, it’s not like Detroit was looking to compete this season anyways. While going without those two players would be a major blow, it still allows the Pistons to achieve their season goal.
For what it’s worth, just because the players that have been brought in haven’t been regularly injured, that doesn’t mean that it can’t still happen.
There’s most definitely a reality where this completely comes back to bite us and once again the team falls victim to the injury bug. It can happen to anyone at anytime.
But as it stands, we can take a definitive look at this Pistons team and feel confident that we could be watching a team that stays healthy for a large majority of the season. It would be incredibly refreshing, and it’s a major step in the right direction.