The Detroit Pistons have brought some excitement to the city of Detroit, which has been waiting a long time for a winner.
All four of Detroit’s major professional teams have been bad as of late, but there are also signs they are turning things around (Sorry, not you , Lions).
With some intriguing young talent and fresh management and coaching, the Detroit sports’ landscape finally feels like it is on the come up, but which of the four teams will be the next to win a title?
There was a time when titles were a regularity in Detroit, as the Pistons, and Red Wings had stretches of domination over their respective leagues and the Tigers made two World Series.
I don’t think a title is imminent for any of them, but things are turning around and more banners could be on the way in the near future.
Least likely to win a title: Detroit Lions
The Lions are currently 0-5 and might have the worst collection of talent in the entire NFL. If they didn’t win a single game this season I don’t think anyone would be surprised. Some fans seem to like Dan Campbell, but don’t be surprised if he is out of there before the Lions are good. The Lions have been a train wreck for most of my life and there is really no sign of that changing anytime soon.
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers have some high-ceiling young talent and are probably a year or two away from being contenders in their division. They probably exceeded expectations this season, but will eventually have to overcome the White Sox, who have a ton of great young players.
Detroit Pistons
I hate to put my Detroit Pistons second on this list, but I think they are still a few seasons away from being serious contenders.
They finally have a potential superstar to build around in Cade Cunningham, and have nice young talent in Killian Hayes, Saddiq Bey, Isaiah Stewart and Saben Lee. I really love Detroit’s bench and think they will outperform expectations this season as well.
The Pistons will have a big advantage next offseason as one of the only teams with cap space, and finally have a GM in Troy Weaver who seems to know what he is doing.
I haven’t been this optimistic about the direction of the Pistons in a long time and think their restoration is not far off.
The Detroit Red Wings will be the next Detroit team to win a title
The Red Wings, like the Pistons, were once the most dominant team in their sport but then had a long stretch of mediocrity. The Wings are being led by Steve Yzerman, who by all accounts is one of the sharpest minds in the game and like Troy Weaver, a master of talent evaluation.
I won’t pretend to know anything about hockey, but from what I’ve read, the Wings have a ton of young talent with plenty more on the way. Hockey is also the sport that flip-flops most quickly, so a team can go from cellar to title easier than in the NBA.
The Tigers, Pistons and Red Wings are all rebuilding the right way with young talent and smart management, so it shouldn’t be long before one of them breaks through and wins a title. I doubt any of us will live long enough for the Lions to be good, but hey, three out of four isn’t bad.