Watching the New Orleans Pelicans beat the Phoenix Suns last night, it became clear that one of the things the Detroit Pistons need is an elite defender.
Rookie forward Herbert Jones was able to hold Chris Paul to just four points in the Pels’ win and he’s been a huge part of their run from 1-12 to the playoffs.
Jones is a great athlete who is completely dedicated to defense, reminiscent of the Pistons’ Dennis Rodman, who brought little to he table offensively but was a game-changer on the defensive end.
Jones can defend 1-5 effectively (just like Rodman) and really relishes taking on the tough assignments night after night even though New Orleans never calls a play for him on offense.
The Detroit Pistons were just 24th in defensive rating this season, 22nd in points allowed, 25th in opponent’s shooting percentage and 23rd in points in the paint allowed.
While most of the focus has been on the lackluster offense, the Detroit Pistons also need huge improvements on the defensive end, and that comes with getting an elite stopper on the wing.
The Detroit Pistons need a wing stopper
It’s possible that the Pistons already have this guy on their team, as Killian Hayes has shown himself to be a plus defender who can guard up effectively.
Cade Cunningham is a very good defender as well, but he has enough on his plate running the offense without also having to worry about being the team’s primary defensive stopper.
Jerami Grant and Saddiq Bey are both quality defenders, but far from elite, and no one would really consider either of them an on-the-ball stopper.
If you look around at the playoff teams in the NBA, nearly all of them have at least one guy whose main purpose is to defend all over the court, whether it is Marcus Smart on the Celtics, Matisse Thybulle on the 76ers, Jrue Holiday on the Bucks, Mikal Bridges on the Suns or Draymond Green on the Warriors.
Defensive stoppers are arguably as important as great offensive players in a league where it gets more difficult to play defense every season.
Hopefully Killian Hayes will evolve into a Marcus Smart type player over time, but until then, it would be nice if Detroit went out and got a wing whose main focus is defense, as these types of players are not only valuable but make life easier for the stars.