The All-Star break came at the perfect time for the Detroit Pistons, as they just made a trade to add James Wiseman and now have a week to get him acclimated with the team before the home stretch starts.
The Pistons won’t feature an All-Star in the game, but they do have two players in the Rising Stars Challenge, which should be the most interesting event, as it features a mini-tournament that pits the sophomores against a talented group of rookies that includes Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren.
The Detroit Pistons will then have just 23 games to finish out the season, another in which they are looking at lottery odds instead of playoff positioning.
But the season is not over yet, and there are plenty of things to watch in these next 23 games when the season resumes next week.
Detroit Pistons: How does James Wiseman fit?
James Wiseman made his debut last night and was solid in the loss to the Boston Celtics. He scored some quick buckets, showed his considerable offensive skill and even flashed some defensive potential that he had not shown with the Warriors.
Wiseman is going to get his opportunities in the home stretch and we’ll be watching closely how he used, who he plays with and whether he and Jalen Duren can co-exist effectively.
Is Wiseman going to be used primarily as a backup center? Can he play power forward next to Duren like Evan Mobley has for the Cavaliers? Does he have any range on his shot? Can he be a decent NBA defender?
There are lot of questions around Wiseman, so it will be fascinating to watch his trends as the season winds down and how coach Dwane Casey chooses to utilize him.
Detroit Pistons: Perceptions of the rookies
Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren won’t get as much time off as their teammates, as they will be participating in the All-Star weekend in the Rising Stars game and Ivey will also be taking part in the Skills Challenge.
The two have been playing well going into the break, as Ivey has really gotten more consistent with his shooting and Duren recently had his most dominant performance of the season.
Ivey has shot 46.4 percent from the field over his last 10 games and 39 percent on 3-point shots on just over four attempts per game. It’s funny how perceptions are formed on players early in the season, as Ivey got the reputation as a guy who can’t shoot the 3-ball, while Bennedict Mathurin was getting a lot of hype as a 3-point shooter in Indiana.
Ivey is now shooting 33.2 percent from long range on the season to 31.9 for Mathurin on the same number of attempts per game.
On top of that, the two rookies have been forming some nice chemistry, especially when Killian Hayes was coming off the bench, as nearly half of Ivey’s assists in that stretch went to Duren, most of them ending in thunderous dunks.
Ivey has a real chance to end up in the top-3 of Rookie of the Year voting, especially since Paolo Banchero has been slumping, not that anyone has noticed, as early-season perceptions gave Banchero the award before the season was half over, similar to how Cade Cunningham was more or less ruled out of the race after a slow start last season.
Ivey and Duren are trending up, and if Ivey continues this type of shooting consistency, the ceiling on what he can be will be raised.
Detroit Pistons: Will Killian Hayes return to the bench?
Killian Hayes has moved back to the starting lineup after an unsuccessful stint on the bench and it will be interesting to see if that trend continues for the rest of the season.
Hayes has struggled from the bench, and in general of late, as he has shot just 29.5 percent from the floor over his last 10 games.
The Detroit Pistons have a big decision to make on Killian this summer, as he is extension eligible, so they have to either try and find a deal that satisfies both parties or go into next season with Hayes on an expiring contract.
Hayes has been all over the place this season, as he stunk in the beginning, as had a nice stretch of 30+ games in the middle as a starter, but has gone back to not being able to hit a shot. If he shoots under 30 percent the rest of the way, the Pistons are going to have to seriously consider letting him enter the final year of his contract without an extension.
His future role with this team (if he has one) will be the backup point guard off the bench, so will coach Casey put him back there? If he can’t thrive in this role, his future with the team is unclear, so it might behoove the team to see what he can do over the last 23 games.
Of course, there is also the argument for keeping him as a starter so he can hopefully play better and build some confidence, so this will be one trend to watch after the All-Star break.
Detroit Pistons: Players on the fringe
The Detroit Pistons have several players whose contracts will be up at the end of the season and most of them (mercifully) will not be back.
One player who is on the cusp is Hamidou Diallo, who has had a nice stretch off the bench and gives the Pistons a boost of energy and defense that they currently lack.
He has given up trying to shoot 3-point shots, and because of it, is shooting 58 percent from the field for the season and over 60 percent from 2-point range.
He is not a player I would have wanted back at the beginning of the season, but Hamidou has shown that he can be an effective bench player who gives the team a jolt of energy, as it seems like he is on the floor every time they go on a big run.
In his last 20 games, Diallo is averaging 11.9 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.4 steals while shooting an incredible 66.7 percent from the floor. If this trend continues, the Detroit Pistons will have a tough call to make at the end of the year.
Detroit Pistons: How does the finish affect Dwane Casey’s status?
Another tough decision to make at the end of the season is what to do with head coach Dwane Casey.
A lot of fans would have you believe he is the main reason the Detroit Pistons have underperformed this season, not that their roster is mismatched, terrible and without its best player.
There have been plenty of things to complain about, from the lack of defensive improvement to the roles some of these players have been put in, but for the most part, coach Casey has done the job he was given this season, which is to develop young players.
I think it is very possible that the Detroit Pistons go a different direction before next season and for many it would be a welcome change, but it will be interesting to see how his team responds down the stretch.
Do they play hard? Is there drama? Do players start tuning him out? Regardless of what you think of Casey, he has not lost his team and there haven’t been any major problems on his watch.
I do think it is time for some fresh blood, and doubt these last 23 games will determine Casey’s future with the Pistons, but the attitude and energy levels of this team will be a trend to watch down the stretch.