Detroit Pistons: 3 things to watch in important game vs. OKC Thunder
The Detroit Pistons will take on the Oklahoma City Thunder tonight at Little Caesar’s Arena in a game that is important for both teams.
You might wonder why a late season game between two of the NBA’s worst teams is important but there are a couple of reasons.
Both teams are battling for position in the NBA Draft and the Pistons are barely clinging to the third-worst record in the league.
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Both the Magic and Thunder are right behind them and OKC has now lost eight games in a row, so they are gunning for the bottom. The Pistons would love to stay in the bottom three to maximize their chances at a number one pick in the draft.
These are also two of the youngest teams in the league, so these types of games are great for developmental purposes, as both teams will be running out young lineups of guys eager to prove themselves.
The Pistons will be missing six players, pretty much all of their veterans, so this could be one of the youngest starting lineups we’ve seen all season.
The battle of the youth will be just one of many things to watch when the Detroit Pistons take on the OKC Thunder.
Detroit Pistons vs. OKC Thunder: Who will start at power forward?
With six players out with various injuries and ailments, Dwane Casey is going to have to lean on his young guys for big minutes.
This might force him to try some players at positions that they have’t played much, if at all, this season.
Will Josh Jackson or Saddiq Bey get a start at power forward? Dwane Casey could go with Sekou Doumbouya or Tyler Cook there to start and bring Jackson off the bench, but he could also go with a small-ball lineup that features both Jackson and Bey.
I would love to see this, as Troy Weaver seems to be building a mostly position-less team that can defend all over the floor and is very switchable.
Can Bey and/or Jackson hold down some minutes at power forward? If so, this will give Casey a lot of lineup options moving forward, as it would allow the Pistons to go big or small against just about anyone.