After struggling in game one, John Collins has been everything the Pistons hoped he’d be when they traded for him in the offseason and let Tobias Harris walk.
There was trepidation about the latter part, and to be honest, there still is, as the Pistons still need guys who can get their own shot, and Tobias Harris was very good at that.
But Collins is making it easy to forget about Harris right now, as he’s added elements to the Pistons’ offense that give them a new look and make them more difficult to defend.
John Collins adds athleticism and shooting that Tobias Harris lacked
Collins has put up 15 points, seven rebounds and a block per game so far in the young season, while Harris is doing what he always does, putting up 13 points and 5 rebounds on steady shooting splits.
Harris is one of the most consistent players in the league, and was very good for the Pistons, but it’s the way these two get their points that matter.
Collins is doing exactly what I hoped he’d do, which is shoot nearly five 3-point attempts per game, something he has yet to do in his career. The Pistons are shooting more of them as a team, which was desperately needed.
Collins has hit 50 percent of his 3-pointers so far, while Harris, who is shooting just three of them per game, is hitting about league average as he always does. Collins won’t shoot 50 percent all season, but he’s much more of a threat than Harris in that spot.
Collins also makes it possible to put four shooters on the floor around Cade Cunningham, which the Pistons did for much of the night against at Joel Embiid-less Philly team.
Harris liked to operate in the same spots as Cade Cunningham, so having another floor spreader opens up the floor more for Cade to go to work, which we saw last night when Philly had a hard time stopping him while worrying about all of the shooters on the perimeter.
It’s probably a wash defensively between Collins and Harris, as Collins is a bit of a tweener against certain teams without a clear matchup. But Collins adds an element of athleticism, verticality and shot blocking that Tobias Harris did not.
Collins is also very good at chasing down offensive rebounds, adding three more of them last night on his way to 11 overall.
As a fan, I will always appreciate what Tobias Harris did for the Pistons, as he was a big part of getting them to where they are, but Collins looks like the better fit so far and is making it easy to forget.
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