Detroit Pistons: 3 things to watch vs. the OKC Thunder

The Detroit Pistons and Oklahoma City Thunder have quietly been two of the more entertaining teams of the season even though they are both near the bottom of their respective divisions.

You could say that both teams are “tanking” but both have played competitively for most of the season and are getting big developmental minutes for their young core as they rebuild, so their season will be viewed as a success regardless of where they end up in the standings.

The Detroit Pistons just got rookie point guard Killian Hayes back from injury and are trying to work him back into the fold to get something positive out of a season that has mostly been lost.

Hayes’ minutes and play will be heavily scrutinized over these last games and the Pistons hope he can start building some momentum for the offseason.

Here are three things to watch as two young teams do battle in Oklahoma City.

Detroit Pistons: Killian Hayes passing

I wrote yesterday that the Pistons are not ready for Killian Hayes’ passing after watching them throw up brick after brick against the Knicks.

Hayes had a couple of beautiful dimes that ended in dunks but he also set teammates up several times only to watch them miss the shot.

The Pistons’ offense has been terrible this season and they are definitely going to have to add some scoring in the offseason if they want to take the next step as a team.

Hayes was setting up his teammates consistently in his 20 minutes last game but they weren’t making the shots, which will be something to keep an eye on in this one.

Hayes’ best skill right now is his passing, so I’d love to see him lean into it, handle the ball more and keep setting up his teammates. Hopefully they can knock down a few more of the open shots he’s creating.