Despite a disappointing loss to the Utah Jazz on Thursday night, the Detroit Pistons are well on their way to a much better year in 2024-25, a fact made true by improvements in many statistical categories. They are fighting for a place in the Play-In Tournament and must accumulate wins to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2019. Here are three areas where Detroit could make improvements. (all statistics are as of December 20 at 9 a.m. ET).
Get more hands in the passing lanes
While some metrics like blocked shots per game have improved this year, one defensive statistic remains glaringly poor. Detroit is getting just 12.8 deflections per game, good for 29th in the league. They are also last in the league in team steals at 6.5 per game.
While some corresponding “hustle” statistics like defensive loose balls recovered are much better (the Pistons are hovering near the top ten), getting more deflections in the passing lane will go a long way toward increasing steals and turning turnovers into points.
Reduce turnovers
Teams with young guards tend to have more turnovers and that’s true with the Pistons. They are 26th in the league with 16.3 turnovers per game. For comparison, arguably the two best teams in the league, the defending NBA champion Boston Celts and the Oklahoma City Thunder have the fewest turnovers in the league by a wide margin.
Like with individual players, teams aim to have a two-to-one assist-to-turnover ratio. Cutting down on turnovers will give the Pistons more possessions, which can help them win more close games. It should come as no surprise that some of Detroit’s younger players are committing more turnovers than dishing out assists, so more experience for Jaden Ivey, Jalen Duran, Ausar Thompson, Ron Holland, and others will help. In many cases, these players may want to focus on making the smart pass, rather than the perfect one.
3-point shooting
As a team, the Pistons are currently shooting 35.8 percent from beyond the arc, good for 17th in the league. They finished at 34.9 percent last year. While that’s an improvement, the top six teams are above 38 percent. Malik Beasley (41.1 percent on nine attempts per game) and Marcus Sasser (40.5 percent) lead the way for the Pistons. But for Detroit to win more games, they may need to see slight improvements from Tim Hardaway Jr., Simone Fontecchio, and Tobias Harris, who are shooting between 31 to 35 percent from deep.
Cade Cunningham (38.6 percent on 6.4 attempts per game) will need to continue shooting at or near those clips as well. While Beasley has been hot lately, Jaden Ivey’s three-point shooting has fallen since the start of December.