Detroit Pistons: The key to Saben Lee’s development
In his first offseason as the Detroit Pistons general manager, Troy Weaver had possibly the most aggressive draft night of any GM in the league. Through various trades, Weaver was able to acquire two additional first-round picks and a second-rounder as well.
The aggressive approach paid off for Weaver as the GM netted the Pistons four players who were impactful for Detroit’s 2020-21 season. With four picks in the 2020 NBA Draft, the Pistons selected Killian Hayes at pick number seven, Isaiah Stewart at pick number16, Saddiq Bey at pick number19, and Saben Lee at pick number 38.
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Lee was Detroit’s only second-rounder from the team’s 2020 draft class. The Pistons acquired the 22-year-old out of Vanderbilt via trade with the Utah Jazz. Lee spent three years with the Commodores in which he averaged 13.9 points and 3.7 assists in a total of 96 games.
Detroit Pistons: Saben Lee showed flashes of potential in his rookie season
With Detroit, Lee played in a total of 48 games while starting in seven of them. The point guard averaged 5.6 points and 3.6 assists on 16.3 minutes per night. Lee shot 34.8 percent from beyond the arc last season, below the league average but not terrible.
Lee definitely would have benefitted from spending time in the G-League this season. In the G-League, the young guard could have honed his game in a more suitable environment for development. Being with the Pistons all season led to inconsistent minutes for Lee which he would not have dealt with in the G-League.
The rookie would go from being inactive one game to playing over 30 minutes the next. The inconsistency of playing time along with battling the growing pains of being a rookie in the NBA led to Lee being one of Detroit’s more inconsistent producers. The 22-year-old had his fair share of games playing over 20 minutes while scoring fewer than five points.
Despite his inconsistency as a scorer, the young point guard showed a lot of promise as a passer. Lee recorded four or more assists in 27 of his 48 games played this season. The 22-year-old was third on the team in total assists trailing Mason Plumlee and Delon Wright.
But Lee is not just a pass-first point guard, he can also score.