The Detroit Pistons were defeated by the Washington Wizards for their fourth straight loss and their 8th in ten games.
This stretch has been good for the tank, as the Pistons have “gained” games on every other bad team except the Minnesota Timberwolves, who are still stuck on 11 wins.
The Pistons are now three games “ahead” of Orlando and a game in front of Houston for the second-worst record in the NBA. They are only a 1.5 games behind the Timberwolves, so if Minnesota can just win a few the Pistons have a very good chance at the worst record overall.
This would be a good thing, as it would guarantee that they stay in the top-five, which is really the only advantage to having the worst record as the odds are the same for the bottom three teams otherwise.
This week saw Delon Wright traded for Cory Joseph and two second-round draft picks, so it has been a good week for Troy Weaver, the Pistons’ future salary cap situation as well as their draft assets.
It also saw the return of Blake Griffin and his subsequent heel turn into Pistons’ enemy #1 after he got Isaiah Stewart ejected with some timely flopping.
Let’s start the stock exchange with the “too early to tells.”
Detroit Pistons stock exchange: Too early to tell
Newcomer Cory Joseph didn’t have to wait long to get in on the action, playing big minutes in his first two games as a Piston and even getting his number called on the final play against the Brooklyn Nets.
He has played fine so far but the fact that he is playing so much tells me the Pistons aren’t really that interested in winning.
Frank Jackson had a couple of good games in a starting role but is now back to the bench, so we will see how his production and minutes are affected. Personally, I’d rather see more of Jackson than Joseph, as he has a much better chance of actually being a Piston next season.
Now let’s get to the movers, starting with the upward trends.
Detroit Pistons: Saddiq Bey and Isaiah Stewart are trending up
Both Isaiah Stewart and Saddiq Bey were featured on the Kia Rookie Ladder for the first time as a duo this season, which has to have Pistons’ fans excited.
Bey came in at #5 and Stewart cracked the list at the 10th spot, though I would bet he is higher next week. Stewart has been impressive of late, averaging 11.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game over the past week.
He is now leading all rookies in rebounds and blocked shots and along with Bey, is forming the foundation that the Pistons will build upon.
He also got into a scrap with former-Piston Blake Griffin which forever endeared him to Pistons’ fans. It’s been a great run for Beef Stew, who is playing like one of the best rookies from his class.
Detroit Pistons: The defense is getting better
The Pistons’ defense has steadily improved since Blake Griffin stopped playing (shocker) and is now up to 15th in the NBA overall, which is not bad considering how much the Pistons have been losing.
This is what the Pistons will build on, as their offense is terrible (more on that in a minute) and they clearly need more shooting.
But offense is much easier to come by in the NBA and if you look at the standings, all of the top teams in the win/loss column are also the top teams on defense. This is not a coincidence.
Troy Weaver has a vision for this team and it starts by having a versatile, athletic and long defensive team that can switch all over the floor. The Detroit Pistons certainly aren’t there yet, but with a solid foundation of defense, they will get there.
Unfortunately, there are more trends going down than up.
Detroit Pistons: Jerami Grant has been struggling
Jerami Grant left the Wizards’ game with a minor injury and is listed as day-to-day, which is probably not the worst thing because he’s been struggling lately.
All of Grant’s numbers are down from his season averages over the last ten games and he has only shot 29.8 percent from the 3-point line.
A lot of this isn’t his fault, as the Pistons don’t have many options on offense and teams are focusing on stopping Grant.
The Pistons need another player or two who can create their own shot and set up teammates, which they will hopefully get when Killian Hayes returns from injury.
Detroit Pistons: Where does the Pistons’ offense rank?
Unlike their defense, the Pistons’ offense just keeps getting worse. They have dropped to 24th overall in the NBA and have been particularly terrible over the last ten games, failing to even score 100 points in four of them.
They scored exactly 100 in another, and 104 and 102 in two more losses during this stretch, so it’s been an ugly effort on that end.
The Pistons have been broke from everywhere, especially the 3-point line, where they continue to be one of the worst teams in the NBA.
Troy Weaver is going to need to find some offense over the next few seasons, as this team can defend but does not have a competitive offense.
Detroit Pistons: Sekou Doumbouya is in the doghouse
It’s hard to say that Sekou Doumbouya is trending, as he has pretty much been in the same place all season, which is in Dwane Casey’s doghouse.
I definitely don’t blame Casey, as he has given Doumbouya some chances, but the second-year player has done little with them and appears to have completely lost all confidence.
Let’s face it, the loss of the G-League this season has really hurt Doumbouya, as he doesn’t have a place to get steady minutes so hasn’t had a chance to get into a rhythm or find a role.
He’s barely gotten off the bench in the last ten games and when he has, he hasn’t done much. If this continues, we could see Doumbouya shipped out in the offseason.
Let’s hope he can earn some minutes down the stretch so that he can start to build some positive momentum for the offseason.