The Detroit Pistons won’t play again until next Thursday, so will have some time to regroup, practice and prepare for the stretch run of another disappointing season.
Fans are expecting results next season, so this will arguably be the most important offseason of Troy Weaver’s career in Detroit, as the team tries to pivot from tanker to competitor.
With only 23 games left in the season, there is not much time to acclimate James Wiseman and to try out players and combinations that will hopefully be a part of Detroit’s resurgence next season.
Before that time comes, the Detroit Pistons will have to use the rest of the season to answer some vital questions that will define their immediate future.
Detroit Pistons: Will Dwane Casey be coaching this team next season?
There is no doubt that the Detroit Pistons need to acquire more elite talent as well as some quality veterans who complement the young players they already have.
But one of the most important questions is who will be leading that group? Casey’s tenure with the Pistons has never been defined by wins and losses, as he was never really given a competitive roster.
Casey is not solely to blame for the team’s performance as some fans would have you believe, but the lack of progress this season, especially defensively, has been disappointing.
The Detroit Pistons may benefit from a new voice in the huddle and there are several viable candidates out there with track records of improving young teams and their defense.
This should be the first decision Weaver makes, as he needs to give the new coach (if there is one) time with his players in the offseason as well as some insight and input into the draft and free agency.
If Dwane Casey is to be fired or moved into a front office position, we should know soon after the season is over.
Detroit Pistons: Can James Wiseman and Jalen Duren co-exist?
Troy Weaver rolled the dice at the trade deadline, shipping out Saddiq Bey and Kevin Knox and bringing in James Wiseman, which was a somewhat confusing move given the Pistons’ lack of wing players and the fact that they already have one of the best young centers in the game in Jalen Duren.
That’s not to mention Isaiah Stewart and Marvin Bagley III, but Weaver is clearly betting that Wiseman has the highest ceiling of any of them and that he can reach his potential with consistent minutes.
The question is where and how those minutes are going to come. Is Wiseman going to play backup center, pushing MBIII, who is making over $12 million a season (Weaver’s worst decision so far), to the third center spot?
Is Wiseman going to play power forward next to Duren in an attempt to go big, which was one of the main reasons behind the trade according to Weaver?
Can Wiseman do enough on the perimeter on both ends to be a power forward in the NBA or will the Detroit Pistons just have two very athletic centers that sometimes share the court?
Weaver’s tenure in Detroit isn’t likely to be affected by this trade one way or another, but Wiseman is already under contract for next season, so the Pistons need to use these last games to see how he best fits with the bigs they already have.
Detroit Pistons: Will Killian Hayes and Isaiah Stewart be extended?
One of the reasons Troy Weaver traded Bey was that the Pistons were uncomfortable giving him a lucrative extension this summer.
But the Pistons will also have three other players from the 2020 draft class who are extension eligible in Wiseman, Isaiah Stewart and Killian Hayes.
Wiseman likely won’t have time to do enough to warrant an extension, so you can probably rule him out.
Isaiah Stewart has improved this season and Weaver is high on his potential to continue to do so, so he’s the likeliest of the three to get extended in the offseason.
The big question mark is Killian Hayes. Hayes is due over $7 million next season, so he is going to be overpaid either way and the Detroit Pistons can’t compound that by offering him an extension that he has done little to earn.
It’s tough to give up on draft picks, especially ones in the top-10, but the Pistons would be better off letting Hayes walk for nothing than to extend him unless he’s willing to take a league-minimum deal.
Detroit can no longer reward players for hope, so Hayes seems the most likely to enter next season on an expiring deal.