The Detroit Pistons didn’t make the splashy moves in free agency that some fans were hoping for this offseason.
When making trades for Joe Harris and Monte Morris, which were pragmatic (albeit underwhelming), the Pistons essentially doubled down on their young core.
So they are only going to go as far as players like Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Jalen Duren and Ausar Thompson take them.
There are several futures bets on the Pistons that are worth a chance, but I’ve also come up with some individual over/unders that will be key statistical goals for next season.
So would you take the over or the under?
Over or under? Statistical goals for the Detroit Pistons
Bojan Bogdanovic: Over or under 52 games played for the Detroit Pistons next season
Bojan Bogdanovic has been mentioned in a hundred trade rumors going back to last season and so far nothing has materialized. The Pistons shouldn’t budge on their asking price, as Bogdanovic is more valuable than salary filler and a couple of second-round picks. What this question is really asking is whether you think Bogdanovic will be traded before next year’s trade deadline. It will be a good measure of how the season is going. If Detroit is looking to move Bogdanovic it’s probably not a good sign, though it could just mean that Ausar Thompson is too good to come off the bench.
Marvin Bagley III: Over or under 2.5 attempts per game from 3-point range
It appears that the Pistons are going to try to pigeonhole one of James Wiseman or Marvin Bagley III into a backup power forward role next season, hoping that one of them can hit enough corner 3-point shots to make the spacing work alongside another big. Count me as very skeptical.
MBIII has never taken more than 2.5 attempts per game from 3-point range, in his third season in the league when he hit 34 percent of them. Detroit would probably live with those numbers, though the idea of watching MBIII jack up 3-point shots makes me more than a little nervous.