When Troy Weaver took over as the GM of the Detroit Pistons, he talked about a restoration rather than a rebuild.
He wants to bring Detroit back to their former glory and has spent the last two years completely transforming the roster.
The Pistons got rid of all of their dead weight and bad contracts, and now have one of the youngest teams in the NBA, but the tear down is the easy part. Now comes the part where he has to build it back up, so where does the restoration stand as we head into the 2022-23 season?
Are the Detroit Pistons getting closer to sustained success? Think about this as a state of the union address, and we’ll look at three areas that will define the restoration: talent, money and assets.
Detroit Pistons: State of the restoration
The talent
Possible stars: Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren
Starters: Saddiq Bey and Isaiah Stewart
Wild cards: Killian Hayes, Marvin Bagley III, Isaiah Livers
What’s missing? A wing stopper on defense
The Detroit Pistons will clearly be building around Cade Cunningham and Jaden Ivey and hope they have an All-Star backcourt of the future. Signs are there that they found the guys, as Cade is the type of wing scorer/facilitator in the vein of Jayson Tatum that all teams are looking to find and Ivey is an explosive athlete who should complement him well.
Jalen Duren is only 18, but has also flashed big potential, as he is super athletic, can get after it on the boards and swat shots. The question is whether he will ever have any kind of offensive game, which could be the difference between him being more like Bam Adebayo rather than Andre Drummond. Both those players were/are All-NBA talents, so I’d take either one, but if he can develop some type of offensive game, his ability to defend all over will make him a star.
Past those three players you are going to need more faith, as both Saddiq Bey and Isaiah Stewart are in “show me” years for the Detroit Pistons. Are these guys starters and future fringe All-Starts themselves or role players that would come off the bench on a good team? Bey has to get more efficient and Stewart has to develop some type of offensive game for that to happen. These two are definitely NBA rotation players, but this season will show us a lot about what they can ultimately be.
The Pistons also have three wildcards that have big boom or bust potential. Killian Hayes was good in preseason and showed increased aggressiveness. If he can end up being a two-way threat like Marcus Smart, then he can be an important part of the core and help speed up the restoration.
Bagley III needs to show he can stay healthy and be the inside force the Pistons need. Can Isaiah Livers be Detroit’s glue guy, a Shane Battier type player who can defend multiple positions effectively and knock down 3-point shots?
The Pistons are still missing a wing stopper on defense, which seems to be the roster’s biggest weakness, as guys like Bey and Livers are not quick enough to switch onto some guards on the perimeter.
Talent-wise, the Detroit Pistons are definitely not there yet, but they have the building blocks of a good team and we’ll have to be patient as they grow individually and as a unit. They definitely need another star player, as beyond Cade and Ivey there is a big gap to the next guy, so adding one in the draft, free agency or trade will be next on Troy Weaver’s agenda.
Detroit Pistons: State of the restoration
The money
Detroit has one of the best payroll situations in the league, so money-wise they are looking very good right now and will look even better after this season when even more dead money comes off the books.
Currently the Pistons do not have a single bad contact, as everyone is either on a rookie deal or a mid-range veteran contract that doesn’t extend past this season. After this season, their highest-paid player will be Marvin Bagley III, who will be making $12.5 million and the Pistons will only have one dead contract on the books in Dewayne Dedmon, who they owe $2.8 million per season through 2024-25.
Detroit could once again enter next offseason with the most cap space in the NBA, and this time, there will be more attractive free agents on which to use it.
Even if they can’t lure a big time free agent, having all of that cap space will allow Detroit to make trades and possibly take on another big salary.
With the young core in place and locked up on rookie deals, Detroit could splash out for a young veteran or two in free agency to complement their core.
One thing to watch is the extension for Saddiq Bey, as the market for his services might have been set already, and not overpaying a role player is going to be key to this restoration, as overpaying for mediocrity is what landed Detroit in this spot to begin with.
Having money in itself is meaningless unless you use it efficiently, so these next few seasons are going to be crucial for the Pistons, as they have to avoid having any bad contacts before all of their young guys get raises.
But money-wise, Detroit is in great shape.
Detroit Pistons: State of the restoration
For a team that hasn’t been good in awhile, the Pistons are not loaded with assets as some of the other bad teams are, as they have not been able to hoard draft picks like OKC.
They do have their own heavily protected pick next season (as long as it’s in the top-18), but owe one to OKC eventually. It’s protected through 2027, and the Pistons won’t have to convey it until they are at least in the top half of the league and out of the lottery.
But Detroit does have some trade assets in Alec Burks, Nerlens Noel and Bojan Bogdanovic, three quality veterans on expiring deals that could almost certainly net them some extra assets this season if they decide to move them.
If Detroit is completely out of contention at the trade deadline, expect all three of these guys to be moved, though I could see a scenario where Detroit decides to keep Bogdanovic or Burks, as they need shooting and both guys can provide it at a reasonable cost.
Detroit is not loaded with assets, so is probably only going to have one first-round pick in the next draft (though we know that can change quickly) unless they can find a trade with a contender who is desperate enough for shooting to give up a first rounder for Bogdanovic.
The Detroit Pistons’ restoration is still far from complete, as they need more star power, a wing stopper and more assets to build with, but they have a solid foundation and are miles away from where they were two seasons ago.
Now we just have to sit back, watch this roster develop and hope they have at least two or three future stars already in place.