Detroit Pistons: Which bad team will be good first?

Detroit Pistons: Which bad team will be good first?

Houston Rockets

I really love what the Rockets have done this offseason, as they had Jabari Smith fall into their laps with the 3rd pick and also grabbed Tari Eason (my pick for sleeper of the draft) and guard TyTy Washington.

But more importantly, they were able to get rid of John Wall finally and traded Christian Wood (I’ve never been a fan, sorry truthers) to the Mavericks.

The Rockets have a guy in  Jalen Green who looks like a foundational superstar in the making, so if Smith ends up being good too, they have a really nice young core.

The question is do they have enough around the youngsters to actually compete next season? I am dubious, as they are just so young and will need time to gel.

I think it may take the Rockets a bit longer than the other teams on this list, but they have the right combination of high-ceiling young players and role guys to be very good in the near future.

They are also poised to have the most cap space of any team next offseason, so the Rockets are going to be good soon and might have the highest ceiling of any team on this list. Except for one of course.

Detroit Pistons

Like the Rockets, the Pistons hopefully already have their two stars in Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey.

They also grabbed 18-year-old Jalen Duren, who could be a force in the paint soon. The Detroit Pistons added veterans Nerlens Noel and Alec Burks to give them some much-needed leadership and depth, but they will certainly miss Jerami Grant, who was traded away to Portland.

The Pistons are getting some buzz from national pundits, as both JJ Redick and Kevin Durant said that they will soon be a force to be reckoned with.

I do think the Pistons have the best overall player of any of these teams in Cade Cunningham, who is the perfect player to build around in the modern NBA. I also think they have potentially better role players in Saddiq Bey and Isaiah Stewart to go along with their star guards.

Will Jaden Ivey be as good as advertised? Will Cunningham make a big leap in efficiency? Do the Pistons have enough scoring? Veterans? I think these are all fair questions, and Detroit is certainly going to be one of the youngest teams in the league next season.

That being said, I think they have a really good chance to be the first “bad “team to get good, as they have the right combination of guys who are now building chemistry together and have complementary roles.

The Pistons also have a great payroll situation, and could have the most cap space in the NBA next offseason, when they will start to look appealing to potential free agents that want to join an up and coming team.

I am 100 percent a biased homer, so of course I am going to pick the Detroit Pistons, but you could also talk me into the Thunder and Rockets as bad teams that are soon to be good.