This is not the season the Detroit Pistons were hoping Sekou Doumbouya would have.
After showing some promise as a rookie, the second-year forward has mostly been glued to the bench, even after the Blake Griffin buyout opened up some more minutes at his position.
I am not one of the fans who thinks he is a bust, but I am starting to wonder why exactly he is not playing. Doumbouya has barely left the bench the last few games, which makes no sense given where the Pistons are and what they are trying to achieve.
I also understand and value Dwane Casey’s ethos of making young players “earn” minutes, as the Pistons are trying to change their culture and that isn’t going to happen if you reward guys who aren’t playing hard.
There might also be some things behind the scenes that fans aren’t privy to, though Doumbouya is a hard worker by all accounts and there hasn’t been any talk of him having a bad attitude.
If there is not some off-the-court reason, then it is time for Sekou Doumbouya to play. Here’s why.
Detroit Pistons: Remember, this team is trying to lose
If you aren’t going to get your project player minutes in a season when you’re tanking, then when exactly is he going to get them?
The Pistons aren’t even trying to win right now, which gives them the perfect opportunity to get developmental minutes for Doumbouya. This might not be true next season or hopefully ever again, so why not take advantage and get your guy minutes?
If he is bad, oh well, you are not trying to win anyway. This has proven to be an effective strategy with Saddiq Bey, Isaiah Stewart and Saben Lee, who are playing through their rookie seasons without the pressure of high stakes games.
Why not give Doumbouya the same opportunity in the one season when you are actively trying to lose?
Look, he’d be in the G-League right now, but there isn’t one, so unless you want this season to be a complete waste of time for Doumbouya’s development, he has to actually play.
I’m sorry, but I’ve already seen more than enough of Cory Joseph and Wayne Ellington. Doumbouya can’t get better if he doesn’t play and now is the ideal time for him to do it.
Detroit Pistons: Building Sekou Doumbouya’s trade value
Doumbouya is the last player on the team that Troy Weaver didn’t draft, sign or bring over in a trade, which means his days may be numbered as a Piston.
I get it, Weaver has a vision of what he wants this team to be and any guy who doesn’t fit that vision is gone. I am fine with that, but if you are going to trade Doumbouya, why not try to build his value a bit?
He showed flashes of what he can be last season and I feel like his trade value was higher then. If he can show that he has potential, he could be a valuable trade chip if the Pistons are trying to move up in the draft or make a trade with a rebuilding team.
Since he is still so young, Doumbouya is essentially like a first-round draft pick himself, so the Detroit Pistons could use his potential as a way to get a better deal in a trade if they decide he is not part of the future core.
If this is how they view him, then it makes no sense not to play him, as teams are not going to view him as an asset if he is just sitting on the bench being forgotten.
Personally I think the Pistons should be patient with Doumbouya, as he was a raw project coming in and will take time to develop.
But if they don’t have that patience and want to start fresh, then let the kid play so other teams can see what he can do.
Doumbouya could be a sweetener in a deal but only if people know who he is.
Detroit Pistons: Sekou Doumbouya needs to find a role and some momentum
Another reason to play your project player in a season that doesn’t matter is that he can build some momentum for the offseason.
Doumbouya looks sapped of confidence at the moment, which is not the way you want him to head into the most important offseason of his young career.
He already didn’t get much of an offseason or Summer League due to the pandemic, so now he has essentially not played real minutes in over a year.
If the Detroit Pistons plan to keep Doumbouya, then they need him to start figuring out what his role will be in the NBA and what he can do to help a team win games.
Right now he is not even sure what position he is going to play, doesn’t have a role and the team doesn’t know what he can do well.
If Doumbouya could string together some good games as the season winds down, he can at least head into the offseason with some momentum and confidence instead of a ton of question marks.
I have supported most of what Dwane Casey has done this season but his handling of Doumbouya has been baffling given where the Pistons are and where they want to be.
This is a rebuilding year, a developmental season, so it’s time to start developing the players that need it most while the wins and losses don’t matter.