Detroit Pistons: 3 roster battles to watch this offseason
Detroit Pistons: Sekou Doumbouya vs. Trey Lyles
This might be the ultimate “high ceiling vs. mediocre veteran” battle, as Sekou Doumbouya is still a young and raw talent with some upside, while you know exactly what you are going to get out of Trey Lyles.
Doumbouya impressed with his defense in the first two Summer League games but then had to miss the rest with a family obligation, which was disappointing.
light. Related Story. These 3 players were Summer League disappointments
I was hoping Doumbouya would dominate Summer League, grab that spot and run with it into the regular season.
Instead, he’ll probably start the season behind Jerami Grant, Kelly Olynyk and Trey Lyles and have to earn his way into the rotation, which could leave him as the odd man out.
Doumbouya has a higher ceiling than Lyles, but has yet to put it all together and his time might be running out to do so. Lyles, who came over from San Antonio, is a steady veteran who is a good, but not great, 3-point shooter and won’t kill you defensively.
If Doumbouya wants to earn minutes, he’ll do it with his defense, but if he can’t impress on that end I can see Casey turning to the more reliable veteran Lyles.
Advantage: Trey Lyles