The Detroit Pistons were the worst team in the NBA last season, logging just 17 wins after star Cade Cunningham went out with injury after only 12 games.
It was a lost season in many ways, as the other young players didn’t get reps with the centerpiece of the team, but both Jaden Ivey and Jalen Duren still put up nice rookie numbers that have given fans hope for the future.
But the 2023-24 schedule is daunting in several ways, and it does at times feel like commissioner Adam Silver was especially cruel to Detroit.
The Pistons would likely have to double their win total (at least) to even sniff the play-in tournament, but with new additions of Monty Williams, Joe Harris, Monte Morris, Ausar Thompson and Marcus Sasser to go along with the return of Cade Cunningham, such a leap is realistic.
Here is a month-by-month breakdown of the Detroit Pistons’ schedule as seen through the lens of an optimistic homer.
The Detroit Pistons will go 2-2 in October
Wins: Hornets, Bulls
Losses: Heat, Thunder
The Pistons will start with three of their first four games on the road, with the home opener against the Chicago Bulls. They open on the road against the Heat and finish on the road vs. OKC. It’s probably best to play the Heat early, as they struggled in the first part of the season last year, so the Pistons do have a chance to start their first month with a winning record.
The Pistons will go 5-10 in November
Wins: Trail Blazers, Bulls, Raptors, Pacers, Wizards
Losses: Pelicans, Suns, Warriors, Bucks, 76ers, Hawks, Cavaliers, Nuggets, Lakers, Knicks
Things get ugly quickly for the Detroit Pistons, as November is a brutal month that should be the most difficult of the season. November has four back-to-backs, including against the Suns/Warriors and Lakers/Knicks. There is a stretch where Detroit plays the Pelicans, Warriors, Suns, Bucks and 76ers in consecutive games, all teams that have playoff, if not title aspirations.
The young roster will be tested right away and Monty Williams is going to have to keep them focused and motivated knowing that more wins should come later in the season.
The Detroit Pistons will have a 5-6 record in December
Wins: Pacers, 76ers, Jazz, Nets, Raptors
Losses: Cavaliers, 76ers, Bucks, Hawks, Nets, Celtics
The full December schedule has not been released yet, as it will be partially determined by the results of the In-Season Tournament, so there will be two more games in the month. Winning five of these 11 games is probably optimistic, but they have two in a row vs. both the 76ers and Nets and teams often split these types of games. December is another tough month, as none of the predicted wins are against bad teams, so Detroit will have their work cut out for them.
The Detroit Pistons will go 9-6 in January
Wins: Rockets, Kings, Spurs, Rockets, Wizards, Bucks, Hornets, Wizards, Thunder
Losses: Jazz, Warriors, Nuggets, Timberwolves, Bucks, Cavaliers
If the Pistons are going to have a winning month, January should be it, as the schedule lightens up a bit and they have a nice stretch of home games. If Detroit doesn’t bank some wins against the other young teams in January, they have little chance to make the playoffs, but as long as they can stay healthy, the Pistons should be hitting their stride about this point in the season, building chemistry and locking down their rotation. There are some potential rivalry games to look forward to after what will likely be a bloodbath in November and December.
The Detroit Pistons will have a 5-6 record in February
Wins: Clippers, Magic, Pacers, Magic, Bulls
Losses: Kings, Trail Blazers, Clippers, Lakers, Suns, Knicks
February contains two back-to-backs including on the road against the Lakers and Suns on consecutive nights. This is another month where things could go off the rails for Detroit if they don’t take care of business against the other bad teams and pick up a couple of unlikely wins at home. For this optimistic prediction, I am banking on Detroit staying healthy and having more of a home-court advantage next season. If they can build some momentum early and have a big January, Little Caesar’s Arena should be packed. And they will need to win at least this many games in February, as March gets brutal once again.
The Pistons will go 6-10 in March
Wins: Magic, Hornets, Raptors, Heat, Pacers, Wizards
Losses: Cavaliers, Heat, Nets, Mavericks, Heat, Celtics, Celtics, Pelicans, Knicks, Timberwolves
If the Detroit Pistons don’t win games early, then they could already be well out of it by March, in which case the season is over, as the final part of the schedule is arguably the most difficult. I mean, if you can put the worst team in the league on the road for nine of their last 11 games, including two back-to-backs, you have to right? Ugh. It starts in March, where Detroit has a tough stretch of games where they play the Heat and Celtics in four out of five games. March should be the month where hopes of the play-in start to die.
The Detroit Pistons will go 2-6 in April
Wins: Bulls, Spurs
Losses: Grizzlies, Hawks, Grizzlies, Nets, 76ers, Mavericks
It would be tough to see this young roster go 8-16 in the final two months, but even that might be optimistic, as the schedule is so tough and road-heavy. The only thing working in Detroit’s favor is that some of these teams might already be tanking (Chicago?) or wrapped up playoff spots, so could be resting some key players.
The Detroit Pistons will go 34-46 in the 2023-24 season
Ok, so we know this one is wrong, as there are still two games not yet on the schedule, but I think most fans would be happy if Detroit doubled their win total in Monty William’s first season as head coach. Obviously, Detroit will lose some games against bad teams and win some against good teams, but if they stay healthy and everything clicks, this isn’t impossible. Last season it took 41 wins to make the play-in tournament, and the Eastern Conference could be even tougher this season with teams like Orlando, Charlotte, Washington and Indiana all improving.
It will definitely take some good luck for the Pistons to win 34 games, but getting to 30 or above would probably make next season a success.