The Detroit Pistons lost three of their four games this week but there was still plenty to be excited about, as well as some worrying trends.
The Pistons dropped both games to the Clippers, before beating the Thunder then losing to the Wizards on the second game of a back-to-back.
The win against OKC was one of the more entertaining of the season, as the Pistons got big contributions from Saddiq Bey, Isaiah Stewart and Killian Hayes, who has only recently returned from injury.
It was great to see the rookies contributing this much late in the season, as a lot of rookies hit the proverbial “wall” around this time.
Before we get into who is trending up and down, let’s take a look at the guys who are too soon to call.
Detroit Pistons stock market: Too soon to tell
Sekou Doumbouya was enjoying his best stretch of the season before an apparent injury to his neck kept him sidelined against the Wizards.
He was starting to log regular minutes and was getting more comfortable in them, so let’s hope he gets back to action so he can finish the season strong.
Same for Mason Plumlee, who has been in and out of the lineup but is rapidly losing his chance to end the season with a double-double average, which would be nice for a guy who has played very well for the Pistons this season.
Killian Hayes has shown some tantalizing flashes since returning from injury but he has been held out of back-to-back games so has not been fully unleashed back into the Pistons’ rotation.
It’s too early to tell with Doumbouya and Hayes, but here are three players who are definitely trending in the right direction for the Detroit Pistons.
Detroit Pistons: Isaiah Stewart had his best week of the season
Few players in the entire NBA had a better week than Beef Stew, who has rapidly become the most popular Piston in a LONG time.
Stewart has had back-to-back monster games and is now leading all rookies in rebounds, blocked shots and field goal percentage.
He’s doing it while playing inspired defense and extending the range on his jumper. Over his last ten games, he’s averaged 8.9 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game while shooting nearly 58 percent from the floor.
Isaiah Stewart should be the starting center on the All-Rookie team this season.
Detroit Pistons: Josh Jackson cleaning up his mistakes
Josh Jackson has been a somewhat nice story this season, though some Pistons’ fans have gone WAY too far with this sentiment, as he is still a poor shooter who turns the ball over way too much.
Jackson has been much better in both areas over the last ten games, shooting 52.8 percent from long range and lowering his turnovers.
Jackson did have five turnovers against the Wizards, which totally threw off the gains he had made in that area, but other than last night he’s been much better at taking care of the ball.
He can already play defense and is a solid scorer around the rim, so if he can clean up these other areas, the Pistons will have a player.
Detroit Pistons: Frank Jackson continues to shine
Frank Jackson has been one of the most underrated members of the Detroit Pistons this season, especially in the second half where he has distanced himself from the other backup shooting guards.
He continues to be instant offense off the bench, scoring 19 again last night and is doing it while shooting over 40 percent from long range on the season.
Jackson is averaging double digits over his last ten games off the bench and looks like a guy who will get a shot to make next year’s team as the backup shooting guard.
Now let’s take a look at the players who are headed in the other direction for the Detroit Pistons.
Detroit Pistons: Hamidou Diallo has disappeared
Hamidou Diallo caught another DNP last night against the Wizards and was really a non-factor the whole week.
He has been battling a nagging injury, so I am not going to ready too deeply into this, but after having a hot start with the Detroit Pistons, Diallo has disappeared.
He’s only played in eight of the last ten games and is averaging fewer than ten points in that span. Diallo looked like a steal for the Pistons and there is still plenty to be excited about, but it would be nice to see him finish the season healthy and playing well.
Detroit Pistons: Saben Lee has been the odd man out
After putting together some impressive games from the starting lineup, Lee has been relegated to bench duty and not even getting much of that. I was hoping to see some of Lee back in the starting lineup but Dwane Casey has elected to go with journeyman Cory Joseph.
Lee has only averaged 16 minutes per game over the last ten and is scoring fewer than four points per in that span on 36.7 percent shooting.
He is still setting up teammates and averaging nearly five assists per game, which is why I’d like to see more of him in the home stretch.
Detroit Pistons: Dwane Casey is a wet blanket
I for one am about sick of Casey’s whacky rotation and minutes allotment. Why are Cory Joseph, Wayne Ellington and Mason Plumlee still playing as if the Pistons are in the heat of a playoff race and not a rebuilding team with young players who need developmental minutes?
If you are not going to play your young guys in the last 15 games of a rebuilding season WHEN YOU ARE TRYING TO LOSE, then when are you? Dwane Casey has sucked the life and excitement out of the fanbase by refusing to just unleash lineups of all young players and giving us what we want.
The Detroit Pistons still have a lot to play for this season and I hope Casey will use the rest of these games to prepare for the future instead of running out guys who clearly won’t even be on the team next season.