Pistons have a Ron Holland problem they didn't have last season

For the last two seasons, Ron Holland II has been in a fortuitous position for the Detroit Pistons, as he was able to get quality developmental minutes on a good team, which is not a chance young players always get. 

The Pistons were good enough to allow Holland to play, partially because he earned his time, and partially because they didn’t have a lot of options. 

The Pistons were thin on wing and power forward depth last season, which is no longer the case, so Detroit will have a Holland problem that they haven’t faced so far in his career. 

Ron Holland will have more competition 

Holland isn’t really a power forward, though he can play there at times depending on who else is on the floor. 

Last season, the Pistons didn’t really have a backup four, but after adding Taurean Prince, Detroit at least has more options. Prince may not supplant Holland, but he could eat into his minutes as a guy who is a proven knockdown 3-point shooter. 

The Pistons also added John Collins, Isaiah Joe and brought back Kevin Huerter, so are deeper at the wing position, which could also potentially eat into Holland’s minutes. 

Ron Holland needs those minutes 

It’s always nice when you can develop a player on the fly and still be a strong team, a position the Pistons have been in for the last two seasons with Holland. 

With higher expectations and increased competition, those developmental minutes for Holland are no longer a guarantee, and he absolutely needs them. 

He’s still only 21-years-old and is still trying to develop some type of go-to move or shot on offense, so Holland needs all of the minutes he can get.  

But the Pistons will go into next season with championship aspirations, so coach JB Bickerstaff is going to play whichever guys give him the best shot at winning, so Holland will need to make sure he’s that guy. 

Ron Holland can make this a moot point 

The easy answer to this problem is for Holland to have a breakout season by developing offensively. 

He specifically needs to hit more corner 3-pointers and offer more on offense than just points in transition, which is where he got most of his buckets last year. If he doesn’t, Holland may find himself sitting in crunch time and in the playoffs, as they have players who are currently better suited to thrive in the half-court offense. 

The Pistons will have to balance the need to get Holland minutes with the need for the team to win as many games as possible in the revamped Eastern Conference, which is an issue they really haven’t had in Holland’s first two years in the league. 

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