Detroit Pistons’ season countdown: 41 days for #41

It seems like it has been an eternity since the Detroit Pistons played a meaningful basketball game.

Their season was over the second Cade Cunningham went down last year and we spent most of it dreaming about draft picks instead of the playoffs.

With Cade returning (hopefully better than ever) and some new additions in Monte Morris, Ausar Thompson and Joe Harris, will next season finally be the one where competitive basketball returns to Detroit?

Training camp is coming soon and there will be plenty of competition, especially at the center position, where the Detroit Pistons have four players battling it out for minutes.

Part of the reason is because of the trade that landed James Wiseman in exchange for Saddiq Bey, a move that will be questioned well into next season. So to continue our countdown, we’ll look at a guy whose career didn’t go as expected in Detroit.

Detroit Pistons: Saddiq Bey, part of the core no more

There was a time when Saddiq Bey looked like part of the future in Detroit. He set several Pistons records for 3-point shooting as a rookie and looked like the wing of the future.

But Bey’s 3-point shooting took a big dip in volume and accuracy, partly because he was playing in a larger role on offense than he should have been, trying to create his own shot off the dribble, which is something at which he does not excel.

In more of a catch-and-shoot role with Atlanta, he shot 40 percent from long range in the 25 games he played for the Hawks last season. Whether that will last is anyone’s guess, as Bey is one of the streakiest shooters I’ve ever seen. Atlanta is taking a wait-and-see approach, as they haven’t offered Bey an extension and could let him go into next season on an expiring deal.

Defensively, Bey had his struggles for Detroit; that and the fact that he reportedly wanted a big extension were enough to scare the Pistons away and send Bey packing.

It didn’t work out as expected for Bey in Detroit, but he did offer some great moments, like when he dropped 51 points on the Magic, but ultimately, his streaky shooting, lack of athleticism on the wing and shaky defense removed him from Detroit’s future plans.