Detroit Pistons half court and transition: A tale of two point guards

The Detroit Pistons have two young point guards who will both play very different roles in the offense.

Killian Hayes has shown himself to be a great passer, especially in transition, but has struggled to score the ball in the half court.

Cade Cunningham is also a very good passer, but is much better at creating and making his own shots, especially in the half court, where he can play isolation against just about anyone and score from all three levels.

There has been a lot of talk about how these two will fit together, as some feel Killian Hayes’ lack of shooting will hurt the spacing around Cade Cunningham.

So if the Pistons are going to put these two together in the starting lineup, they will each have to figure out a role and when they will be the primary ball handler.

Detroit Pistons: Killian Hayes will facilitate more in transition

Dwane Casey has remarked about the “pace” with which Killian Hayes has been playing in training camp so far, which may be the key to his offense.

Hayes has shown that he can make spectacular passes off the bounce and already has some highlight-reel assists in transition.

When the Pistons get out and run, I expect Hayes will be doing a lot of the ball handling, as he has elite court vision and can get it the guys who can finish on the break.

Playing with pace and running gives the Detroit Pistons a chance to get into their offense before the defense has a chance to set, which will make it more difficult to sag into the lane on Killian Hayes and force him to shoot over top.

Handling the ball in transition will not only help Hayes lead the team in assists, but will also keep him aggressive and from having to think too much in the half court. He can just see the action and react.

Detroit Pistons: Cade Cunningham will run the offense in the half court

One of the Pistons’ biggest weaknesses last season was that they lacked a guy who could get his own shot consistently in the half court, especially as the shot clock was winding down.

Jerami Grant can do this at times, but is probably not a true #1 option, so Cade Cunningham will be taking over in this department.

Cade can break people down off the dribble and has the size to shoot over just about anyone, so I expect him to have the ball in his hands a lot more than Killian Hayes when things slow down in the half court.

Some fans are worried that the Pistons are going to reduce Cunningham’s impact by making him play off the ball, but he is clearly the better point guard in the half court and will be facilitating the offense when the Pistons are not just running in transition.

Both guys are going to be playmakers and facilitators for the Pistons, but both are good at different things and will do it in different phases of the offense.