The upcoming NBA Draft Lottery, in which the Detroit Pistons have the best odds, is considered by many to be the most important since 2003, when the Cleveland Cavaliers won the top pick and the right to select LeBron James.
We are potentially witnessing the berth of a generational talent, so how does Victor Wembanyama fit into the modern day version of our beloved professional basketball league? And how does he fit on the Detroit Pistons?
Detroit Pistons: Victor Wembanyama’s strengths and weaknesses
Victor Wembanyama’s strengths
The man is closing in on 7 and-a-half feet tall. He has an 8-foot wingspan, which will be the widest in the NBA. You may have guessed that his shot-blocking is otherworldly. Given his physical gifts, he may someday swat a shot taken on a distant planet. Until then, he will be transforming whatever squad is lucky enough to add him into an entirely different defensive unit. He might, all by himself, be capable of making such a unit elite. He alters shots that he doesn’t block and has attackers who find themselves jumping in his vicinity regretting their decision. Those who dribble in his direction are also prone to changing their minds. His length helps him when he is called upon to switch, as it often atones for his footspeed, which is the rare attribute that doesn’t merit gushing about.
Offensively, you will find someone who can handle the rock far better than should anyone his size. As for size, it isn’t all about wingspan and height. While he won’t ever be Shaquille O’Neal, in a strange way he looks kinda yoked. This is encouraging, as it gives one hope that he will be able to add strength and mass as he matures much like Giannis Antetokounmpo did after entering the NBA as a lanky forward.
Every added pound of muscle will matter to someone with his physique. He has a rather smooth jump shot that is almost unstoppable given his release. There is work to be done before his accuracy outside the arch will be up to snuff, but it’s already in the ballpark. If he manages to become an average threat, he’ll have an impact in that facet of the game as well. If he exceeds that? He’ll be scoring points like Kevin Durant. Obviously, he’s going to be an elite offensive rebounder, and he can dish the rock well enough, too.
His potential in the pick-and-roll is pretty much unlimited, as defenders would have to respect him as the roll man and wouldn’t be able to stop him if he wanted to pop out for a shot. In short, he has the potential to be the best two-way player in the league.
But he does have some shortcomings.
Detroit Pistons: Victor Wembanyama’s strengths and weaknesses
Victor Wembanyama’s weaknesses
The obvious, glaring answer to this is his physical strength. Truth be told, not many young men enter in the NBA at 19 years old as jacked as Jalen Duren. Furthermore, rare is the 7-footer that doesn’t lean toward the thin side. While his present, diminutive stature will create some problems for him on the defensive end, the problems really surface on the offensive end. He’s reliant on jump-shooting but not yet a very good jump shooter. He doesn’t have janky mechanics like Lonzo Ball entered the league with, nor is broken confidence bleeding into his mechanics and causing yips as was the case with Markelle Fultz. He just hasn’t gained master of the skill. There’s reason to think he will. Even more significant is his relative inability to gain post position to use his length and height around the basket. It will probably be a few years before he reaches the maturity he needs in order to accomplish that.
Other areas where Wembanyama is noted as having difficulty include passing out of double and triple teams. Decision-making under pressure is an area he will need to improve in to limit the turnovers. Passing, generally, will be an area of needed growth from day one. Unequivocally, the biggest weakness in his game is durability. Even if he sidesteps dreaded Achilles’ heels that big men are more prone to run into, like the foot and knee injuries that derailed the careers of Greg Oden and Yao Ming, or that sapped Arvydas Sabonis of some of his gifts, he will still need to bulk up to absorb the physicality of life in the NBA for a frontcourt player, centers particularly. Many pundits think he will begin his career as a power forward for that reason.
Detroit Pistons: Victor Wembanyama’s strengths and weaknesses
How Victor Wembanyama fits on the Detroit Pistons
So this is the most interesting component of this whole matter, right? We’ve been watching the reconstruction of our beloved Detroit Pistons, eagerly awaiting FDA approval of an over-the-counter hypnotic that would make us forget about the last ten years – or in lieu of that – competitive basketball. We were hopeful that we’d begin to see that this season, prior to Cade Cunningham’s season-ending surgery. When it became apparent that Cade wouldn’t be coming back and that we’d Fade-for-Wembanyama, masters of the tank as we are, we found hope in the emergence of Jalen Duren.
Troy Weaver’s first draft class ran four players deep (one of which, Saben Lee, is the odd man out regarding what comes next) and quickly found himself with a trio of players worthy of auditioning to be foundational pieces for the talent bereft franchise. Two of those three players are now regarded as potentially being solid parts of the rotation in Isaiah Stewart and Killian Hayes, while the third, Saddiq Bey, is likely now held in a similar regard in Atlanta.
Entering this season, a new trio was beginning to emerge in Cade Cunningham, who was beginning his sophomore campaign, and rookies Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren. Duren was the one who quickly began exceeding expectations. In his first game he was the first big off the bench and tallied 14 points and 10 boards, taking advantage of the playing time afforded him by a Marvin Bagley injury. Duren spent the season ranking among the league’s best rookies, which made it that much more surprising when Weaver flipped Bey for Warriors center and former #2 overall pick James Wiseman. Wiseman’s addition to the roster confused fans and muddied projections, while also making many fans opine about the general manager’s infatuation with centers.
Experimentation with both Wiseman and Duren in the lineup was difficult to track. Usually, Wiseman started and Duren came off the bench, but they started alongside each other in the last five games. How valuable that data is, given how inexperienced each one of them still is and how badly the team played in general, is questionable.
All of that is to set the stage for the analyzation of how Wembanyama would fit with the Detroit Pistons. Even if Weaver currently prefers Wiseman to Duren, and intends to try to prioritize the former over the latter, that would seemingly change with the arrival of Wembanyama, whose skillset resembles Wiseman’s more than Duren’s, making the deadline acquisition expendable and a sure bet to be dealt again. Duren and Wembanyama, on the other hand, might be a beautiful fit together, at least early in their careers. Duren is built to bang, as is teammate Isaiah Stewart who could also help alleviate some of the responsibilities typical given to “centers.” And again, Stewart has a developing outside shot but the same can’t be said of Duren, so Wembanyama’s range would prevent the floor-spacing issues that are unavoidable with the Wiseman/Duren pairing.
A starting five of Cunningham, Ivey, a free-agent wing, Wembanyama and Duren looks really good on paper. The pick and roll potential with that team is sky high, and will be criminal if and when the majority of them are reliable from range. Defensively, they have the length that Weaver wants. It should be a good rebounding unit. The old guard of Hayes and Stewart looks even better coming off the bench and dispersing into this group.
Whether or not Wembanyama is the next Zion Williamson or LeBron James, he’s going to help whatever team he goes to. The Pistons, who are still in the talent acquisition phase would have no hiccups bringing him into the fold. They might be able to flip Wiseman for, oddly enough, a Bey-like talent (but maybe more talented) that would fit the team better. Wiseman wasn’t here long but he flashed more in Detroit than he did Golden State, with nearly 13 points and 8 rebounds in 25 minutes a game. There would be good reason to be excited should Detroit win this lottery.