Detroit Pistons lineups to lean into, lineups to avoid

Bonus Lineup #1

Cade Cunningham

Killian Hayes

Alec Burks

Isaiah Stewart

Jalen Duren

• GP: 3, MIN: 10

• Net Rating: 47.4

• Offensive Rating: 161.1

• Defensive Rating: 113.7

Detroit’s best lineup this season based off Net Rating comes in at 113.7, and is mostly the young guys with added veteran help from Alec Burks. Cade and Killian bolster this lineup's backcourt, and Alec Burks provides much needed three point shooting on the wing. Isaiah assists both Burks on the wing by stretching away from the basket himself, and Jalen Duren protects down low. This lineup definitely benefited from Alec Burks’ red hot start to the season. He was unable to miss from deep, creating more space for the others playing alongside him. Unfortunately, Burks has cooled off immensely, falling below his career averages from deep. On top of his regression, Killian has also cooled, and Stewart and Duren have both battled injuries. 

It’s obvious that this lineup has a very small sample size. The other lineups have played together across 5+ games, this group only having three. However, their offensive rating is 161.1, and defensive is 47, which are excellent marks for both. This lineup is extremely efficient and, if they were to be used more, and were able to replicate their success on a larger scale, it would absolutely be worth pursuing. 

Bonus Lineup #2

Cade Cunningham

Jaden Ivey

Ausar Thompson

Bojan Bogdanovic

Jalen Duren

• GP: 1, MIN: 2

• Net Rating: -100

• Offensive Rating: 100

• Defensive Rating: -200

One final bonus lineup is Cunningham/Ivey/Thompson/Bogdanovic/Duren. I’ve included this one because I think it’s essentially the lineup that most fans want to see, and is the best way forward for this team. On paper, it makes the most sense. Cade has come alive over the last few weeks. Jaden Ivey is explosive towards the basket and provides some outside shooting. On the wings, Ausar and Bogey offset each other nicely. Ausar with his rebounding, defense and transition but lack of shooting, Bogey with his current 42% three point shooting percentage. Finally, down low is Duren, who is a clear pillar for the organization to build around. 

Unfortunately, we have only seen this lineup featured in one game, for just two minutes. This is mostly due to the injuries Jalen Duren and Bojan have suffered this season. As Bogdanovic has gotten increasingly healthy, Duren has gone down with a few ankle injuries. Additionally, while it is an extremely small sample size, this lineup has an net rating of -100. It’s not even fair to elaborate on their numbers further based on the small sample size, but you’d expect it to be slightly better.

This is the Pistons’ best lineup, when all healthy. The question is, will they ever be healthy enough before pieces begin to be traded away?