Fans of the Detroit Pistons entered the season with extremely cautious optimism, hoping for a team that at least wasn’t the worst in the league.
Most viewed this as a placeholder team that Trajan Langdon would use to evaluate his young players before reworking the roster the following offseason.
But the Pistons outplayed everyone’s expectations and are hunting a playoff spot instead of a lottery spot for the first time in more than five seasons.
The narrative around this team went from “please don’t be the most miserable team in the league again,” to “wow, is this team actually good?” in the span of a few months.
A lot of other narratives have changed with it and we now have a different perspective on certain players and how they fit together.
Here are three storylines that dominated the last offseason but have all but disappeared.
The Pistons are going to trade Jaden Ivey
I have to admit that I was open to the idea last offseason when it looked as if the Pistons needed to make drastic changes to their roster.
To be fair, Ivey didn’t look the part, as his defense was atrocious and he wasn’t an efficient 3-point shooter, so not the ideal fit with Cade Cunningham.
But big leaps in efficiency changed that perspective, as Ivey has shown he can be an effective off the ball shooter. Ivey was hitting an outstanding 45.2 percent of his catch-and-shoot 3-point shots before his injury, highest on the team.
He’s still not a great defender, but he’s made strides and at least was putting in more effort on that end, something you can say about most of the roster.
This is why his injury was so devastating, as it cost the Pistons valuable evaluation time and Ivey valuable reps in the starting lineup.
Even with the emergence of Ausar Thompson and Ron Holland II, there is a place for Ivey, at the very least as the backup point guard who comes in and changes the pace of the game.
Unfortunately, his contract situation and the fact that he is likely the Pistons’ best trade asset are going to keep Ivey’s name in the trade rumors, but I think most fans have cooled on this idea and see Ivey as part of the future.
The Detroit Pistons need an upgrade at center
I think everyone banged this drum at some point, either before the season started or after Jalen Duren got off to a slow start offensively.
Neither Duren, nor Stewart are perfect modern NBA centers, but as a unit they complement each other well.
For all of the defensive concerns, the Pistons are top-10 in rim protection overall. Does Duren still need a lot of work? Yep. But his effort has been consistent of late and (obligatory reminder) he’s only 21-years-old.
Stewart is far more locked in defensively now that he’s back to playing center, and even though he’s not shooting 3-pointers any longer, he’s thriving in his role.
They are both flawed, but not irreconcilably so, and the idea that the Pistons need to make a big splash here has cooled somewhat. It would be nice to have a center who can shoot and protect the rim, but there aren’t many of those guys out there.
It will be interesting to see how the Pistons handle Duren’s extension this summer and if they are willing to commit to him fully as the center of the present and future.
Ausar Thompson and Ron Holland II can’t play together
When Trajan Langdon drafted Ron Holland II, there was a lot of loud talk about how the Pistons should have taken someone else and that he was too similar to Ausar Thompson.
But if you want to build your team around defense, having two elite defenders on the wing is a good start, even if both of their shots are a work in process.
Holland is getting much better in that regard and Ausar is showing that he can make an impact in other ways. News flash: Not every single player has to shoot 3’s!
The proof is in the numbers. The two have appeared in 27 games together, logging 93 minutes total, so the sample size isn’t huge, but they have a 94.5 offensive rating and an 87 defensive rating when sharing the floor for a +7.5 net rating.
Both Thompson and Holland are game changers who don’t need to launch a ton of 3’s to make an impact. What’s scary (for opponents) is that Holland’s shot is smooth and looks legit (Ausar, not so much) and he’s already able to create and get to the rim. At 19.
If these two end up as even close to league-average 3-point shooters, the league is in trouble, as they are both tough to handle and already borderline elite defenders.
The narrative that they can’t play together has shifted to, “these two guys might be starting together next season,” and I am here for it, as I love watching both of them play.