The Detroit Pistons are currently the worst team in the NBA and all signs are pointing to them staying there until this season is mercifully over.
It’s been one long disappointment this season, as the Pistons had little chance to be competitive when Cade Cunningham went down, though having a healthy Cade was not likely to save what is ultimately a very poorly constructed roster.
Troy Weaver has mostly gotten a pass during this rebuild as the team he took over was a mess, but that is all going to change soon, as fans are growing impatient.
Weaver didn’t help himself by talking this team up before the season started, but is right back at it again, making promises that the team is “going to be great” next season. The question is how that is going to happen, as getting Cade back, adding a top draft pick (unless it is Victor Wembanyama) and a free agent or two isn’t likely going to be enough to fix a roster that looks far more like a collection of basketball cards than a team.
Detroit Pistons: Running it back next season
Albert Einstein is credited with saying that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result, and by that measure, the Detroit Pistons might be labeled insane next season, as they have 10 players returning from a team that is not likely to win 20 games.
- Bojan Bogdanovic
- Marvin Bagley III
- Cade Cunningham
- Alec Burks (Team option)
- James Wiseman
- Jaden Ivey
- Killian Hayes
- Jalen Duren
- Isaiah Stewart
- Isaiah Livers (Team option)
It’s also possible the Pistons will retain Hamidou Diallo in free agency, and if so, that is most of your roster for next season. Please explain how the same team is going to be great next season. We can count on some development and improvement from the young guys, but that is not a given and hardly enough to make this team a playoff contender.
Getting Cade back will obviously help, but he’s going to need some time to get back into a rhythm and adding him alone isn’t going to make this into a cohesive playoff team. Yes, Detroit will likely have a top 5-6 pick, but unless it is Wembanyama, they may not even get a player who will start right away.
The supply of free agents is thin, and there will be plenty of teams with cap space to compete for them, so the Pistons can’t count on free agency to save them.
So I’ll ask again, how exactly is this team going to be great next season? Right now, it’s not a cohesive team that makes sense and there are going to need to be changes if we want to avoid going through this again next season.
Fans are loathe to trade away their favorite players, but that is exactly what may need to happen if this team is going to compete.