On Friday night, the Pistons suffered a surprising loss to the Jazz behind an awful defensive effort. They struggled to find answers for the explosive duo of Lauri Markkanen and Keyonte George while arguably their best defender sat on the bench. JB Bickerstaff's decision to bench Ausar Thompson for nearly the entire second half had fans shaking their heads in disbelief.
Ausar Thompson was benched for Caris LeVert
Throughout the season, Bickerstaff's most puzzling decisions have often centered around Caris LeVert. The two have a long history going back to their time together on the Cavaliers. As such, LeVert has earned Bickerstaff's trust even when he's not playing his best basketball.
It's led to a lot of success for the Pistons when LeVert plays well. He's shot the ball well this season - 39% from deep for a team that desperately need 3-point threats. But LeVert has often been overtasked with playmaking duties and his defense is less consistent than other Pistons wings.
Those defensive flaws arguably cost the Pistons a win against the Jazz when LeVert was unable to stay in front of George on the eventual game-winner. It was shocking to see him still on the court for that play immediately after a timeout rather than Thompson. Thompson is one of the league's most talented defenders and keeping him sidelined even in a specific situation tailor-made for him seems like an obvious error.
The Pistons aren't a perfect defense by any means and often struggle with being overly physical. But LeVert is the rare player on the team whose struggles seem to come from a lack of effort and physicality instead. His play hasn't fit into the team culture of toughness and a strong defensive identity but he continues to play big minutes because of his past connection with Bickerstaff.
Bickerstaff clearly saw something he didn't like in Thompson's 16 minutes of action. But keeping him benched for such a long time seemed like an overly harsh punishment. He last saw the floor with 8 minutes to go in the third quarter. It gave fans unfortunate flashbacks to former coach Monty Williams benching Jaden Ivey in favor of Killian Hayes for vague defensive purposes, despite Hayes' clear offensive limitations.
Ausar Thompson has his own flaws, but is far too talented to keep off the floor in key moments against good matchups. The coaching staff also needs to put him in positions to succeed and maximize his abilities. Hopefully JB Bickerstaff and company can improve their synergy with Thompson throughout the season and figure out which rotations are most sensible in key situations.