Detroit Pistons training camp preview: Battle of the forwards

Detroit Pistons training camp: The big question at forward

I don’t think there is any doubt that the Pistons’ group of centers is more talented than the forwards, and depending on coach Casey uses them, we could see just two of these forwards in the rotation.

Isaiah Stewart, Kelly Olynyk and Marvin Bagley III can all play the power forward spot and will get a chance to do it while one of the other bigs plays center. It’s likely we’ll see Stewart and MBIII together quite a lot and Olynyk will spend time in the second unit with one of the two or Nerlens Noel or hopefully Jalen Duren.

If one of these guys shows that they can step out and hit a shot (we know Olynyk can), then Knox, Key and even Diallo might be completely shut out of the full-time rotation.

I don’t think this is an ideal situation, as Beef Stew has not yet proven he can shoot consistently, though he has shown signs. Olynyk would have a hard time defending some power forwards, and MBIII is pretty much useless outside of the paint, as he has shot just 29 percent from 3-point range and hopefully won’t be launching a lot of them next season.

But Knox, Key and Diallo aren’t much better (worse in Diallo’s case), so Detroit may decide to go with the added size and rebounding rather than more traditional forwards who simply aren’t that good.

One thing is certain, the Detroit Pistons need an upgrade at forward, as they really only have one guy who is a sure thing and then a whole lot of question marks behind him.