When fans of the Detroit Pistons were in the trenches, cheering for a team that was the worst in the NBA for over a decade, we could only dream of a time when sustainable success was again a mainstay in the Motor City, and that time may be now.
After having an admirable run of sustained success that included six consecutive trips to the Eastern Conference Finals and a title, the Pistons spent the next 15 years vacillating between mediocre and terrible.
After enduring the worst losing streak in franchise history, the Pistons finally appear to be back to their winning ways after making the playoffs last season and sitting in first place at the quarter mark of this one.
With a team built around a young core, the Pistons have a chance to be good for a long time, and I’m not sure fans would ever forgive the front office if they gave that up for a long shot chance at a title with Anthony Davis.
Anthony Davis could bring a title, but could also ruin the Detroit Pistons
We’ve seen a rash of rumors connecting the Detroit Pistons to Anthony Davis, which seems unlikely to me given what both Trajan Langdon and JB Bickerstaff have been preaching about this team since they started winning last season.
But with the Eastern Conference wide open, the Pistons may see an opportunity to win the conference and take a shot at a title. I know there are those who think teams should always take this shot, as you don’t know when it is going to come around again.
And Anthony Davis has a history of being this exact type of mercenary, as he helped the Lakers to a title in the first season he arrived in LA, though it was in the Disney Bubble, so many fans put an asterisk next to it.
After that the Lakers were bounced in the first round, missed the playoffs, made the Western Conference Finals and then got beaten in the first round again, so even though they did win a title, sustained success eluded the Lakers with Davis, who was injured a ton during this stretch.
Most fans would take this, as winning a championship is the goal, and all of the sustained success in the world doesn’t matter much if you don’t eventually win the ultimate prize.
But can we at least enjoy the team we have for a few seasons before we decide to blow it up? The Pistons have only begun to scratch the surface of their talent and could very well win a title without making this type of risky move.
And it would be just as likely to blow up in their faces if we are talking about Anthony Davis, a player with long injury history who has already missed 15 games this season.
Davis is 32 years old and eligible for an extension next offseason, so is riskier than ever for whichever team ends up with him.
Eventually, the Pistons may have to make a trade to consolidate some of their talent for a star to help push them to a title, but it doesn’t have to be now, and it doesn’t have to be for a player with all of the red flags that Davis has.