The Detroit Pistons hope to follow the same path as the Miami Heat.
The Detroit Pistons are finally rebuilding after years of mediocrity and they seem to be emulating the Miami Heat, which is a good thing.
The Heat are known for their “culture” under Pat Riley and have been a consistent winner in his time there, which is the exact type of stability the Detroit Pistons and most other teams would like to have.
Culture is an overused term in NBA circles but if there is a team that has it, it’s the Miami Heat.
The Heat always seem to have good young players even though they rarely draft in the lottery. They don’t go through decades of losing, and usually make the playoffs.
Detroit hopes to build the same “culture” and looks like they might be looking to Miami for guidance.
Detroit Pistons: How Detroit can mimic Miami’s success
The Elusive Culture
So how exactly have the Heat built this culture that everyone is always raving about?
It starts with stability at coach. The Heat have one of the best in the league in Erik Spoelstra, who has spent most of his adult life as their head coach.
Players respect him and want to play for him. It’s also reassuring to know the same guy is going to be there if you sign as a free agent.
Dwane Casey has been good for the Pistons’ “culture” so far even though they haven’t won much in his tenure. It’s doubtful he’ll have anywhere near the longevity Spoelstra has had, but you could find far worse mentors for Detroit’s young players.
Whether it is Casey or someone else, the Pistons need stability at coach.
Having a forward-thinking owner who recognizes talent and gets out of the way also helps. I won’t get into what I think of Tom Gores as a human, but if he can just stay out of the way and let Ed Stefanski and Troy Weaver build the roster without his input, the Pistons could have the beginnings of a top front office.
Troy Weaver has the beginning of something with this roster, which is starting to look a bit like the Miami Heat.
Detroit Pistons: Jerami Grant could be like Jimmy Butler for the Pistons
The Leader
The Heat’s current roster is built around small forward Jimmy Butler, a guy who can defend all over the floor, get shots in a variety of ways, rebound and set up his teammates.
Sound familiar?
The Pistons have a similar player in Jerami Grant, who has blown up this year in an expanded role and is playing at an All-NBA level on the wing.
Like Butler, Grant is a tenacious defender who plays big minutes and sets an example for his teammates.
No one thought a team built around Butler and a bunch of young guys was going to make the Finals last year, but Butler’s influence sped up their timeline.
Jerami Grant could speed up Detroit’s in the same way, as his style of play is going to make the young guys better.
Keep in mind that Butler didn’t have his breakout season for the Bulls until he was 25 and has been an All-Star pretty much ever since.
Grant is still just 26 himself and is having a breakout season of his own.
He may never be as good as Butler but the Pistons found a guy with the skills, attitude and position to build around.
Detroit Pistons: Isaiah Stewart could be the next Bam Adebayo
A modern center
Another reason Miami is so good right now is that they have a star center in Bam Adebayo.
Adebayo definitely doesn’t fit the mold of a traditional center, as he is only 6-foot-9 but uses his combination of athleticism, strength and length to dominate most NBA bigs.
I wrote recently that Isaiah Stewart could be this type of modern center for the Detroit Pistons.
Beef Stew is about the same size as Adebayo and has a similar profile, though Stewart is a year younger than Adebayo was when he entered the league.
Both are athletic bigs with long arms and high motors. The difference is that Adebayo learned how to shoot and has made himself an All-NBA talent in the process.
Whether Stewart will ever develop a jumper is yet to be seen but he has a decent stroke (better than Adebayo’s was when he entered the NBA) and shot 77 percent from the line in college, so it’s not unreasonable to think he’ll improve.
Even if he doesn’t, Stewart is a guy who can defend all over the floor, switch on the pick-and-roll and get after on the boards.
Even though he is “old school” in some ways, in others he is the model of a modern big man.
Detroit Pistons: The Pistons need more 3-point shooting
Shooters
The Miami Heat showed just how important shooting can be in last year’s run to the Finals.
The Heat were one of the best 3-point shooting teams in the NBA and rode the hot hands of Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson once they got to the playoffs.
The Heat’s spacing on offense was a thing of beauty, which opened up lanes for Jimmy Butler to penetrate and for Adebayo to grab offensive rebounds.
This is one area of the roster that Detroit needs some improvement if they want to emulate Miami.
Detroit is lacking 3-point shooters, though they may have one in Svi Mykhailiuk. Mykhailiuk looks like that guy at times and is a 37.5 percent 3-point shooter for his career.
Jerami Grant (and hopefully Killian Hayes in the future) can get into the lane but right now he doesn’t have many guys to kick out to, as Detroit is currently 22nd in the NBA in 3-point percentage.
I’m sure Troy Weaver is well aware and will be looking to add shooting in the future.
The Detroit Pistons have a long way to go to get to where the Heat are as a franchise, but they have a good start and it finally looks like they have the guys to finish the job.