The Pistons are entering this season with two goals in mind: solidify their young core and ascend into contention. Balancing both goals can be difficult, but possible with the proper growth from young players. However, if the Pistons fail to find a second star among their current roster, they might have an emergency trade option in Anfernee Simons.
Anfernee Simons: Criminally Underrated Scorer
Simons has flown under the radar of national media in recent seasons on a rebuilding Portland team, but he’s legitimately one of the most talented scorers in the league. He’s a smooth operator with a tight handle and capable of scoring at all three levels. Since breaking out in the 2021-22 season, Simons has averaged 20 points per game while shooting 44 percent from the field and 38 percent from three.
His overall efficiency hasn’t been the greatest, but most of his shots have been entirely self-created due to the lack of surrounding talent on the Blazers roster. And his 3-point percentage shows that he’s a great shooter, even when taking tough contested threes.
Simons was overtasked as the first option on the Blazers, but I expect him to look more comfortable as a second or third option on the Celtics this season. However, the Celtics have made cost-cutting moves all offseason, and may be looking to dump Simons’ large salary before the trade deadline.
On the Pistons, he would be a perfect fit as a secondary shot creator next to Cade Cunningham. The Pistons are hoping that Jaden Ivey can fill that role as he develops, but Simons has already proven effective as an NBA scorer. If Ivey doesn’t show clear signs of progression, he could be traded for Simons in a move to shift the Pistons championship window to the immediate future. I'm not the biggest fan of making rash decisions on young players, but the front office will need to be realistic if the team is on the cusp of contending already.
Arguably Simons’ biggest weakness is his defense. He’s relatively small for a shooting guard at 6-foot-3 but this won’t be as big of a problem on the Pistons. Cade Cunningham’s 6-foot-6 frame at point guard can make up for his backcourt mate being on the smaller side and still allow the Pistons to keep up their vaunted defense.
Despite going into his 8th NBA season now, Simons is still only 26 and just entering his prime. He’s only a couple of years older than Cade and slots well into the Pistons timeline if Cade is ready to contend for a championship very soon. Cade has expressed his desire to take another leap as a player and team this season, and Simons’ addition will make it all the more likely.