The Detroit Pistons have an uphill climb ahead of them as they try to move up the Eastern Conference standings next season.
And they’ll be challenged right away in the second year of the NBA Cup (formerly called the in-season tournament) which will start in the middle of November.
The NBA Cup was a success or a dud depending on who you ask, as it did draw some attention to the NBA at a time when they usually aren’t getting any. The NBA is clearly trying to draw more eyeballs before Christmas, and they did manage to do that in the inaugural season.
Some didn’t like the wonky courts and thought the event was mostly pointless considering there wasn’t anything real at stake, and it will be interesting to see if the league tweaks the reward over the next few seasons to change that.
The schedule for the NBA Cup has been released and the Pistons find themselves in a familiar position as the underdog.
Detroit Pistons NBA Cup schedule
The Pistons will play in East Group B along with Indiana, Toronto, Miami and Milwaukee, not the easiest draw in the world.
Indiana was surprisingly in the East Finals last season and both Miami and Milwaukee are hoping to get back there. That leaves Toronto and Detroit as the two teams that didn’t make the playoffs last season and are unlikely to be there in the next one.
Here is the full slate of games:
-11/12 vs Miami 7:00 PM ET
-11/15 @ Toronto 7:00 PM ET
-11/29 @ Indiana 8:00 PM ET
-12/3 vs. Milwaukee 7:00 PM ET
Detroit will undoubtedly be the underdog of the group given that they were the worst team in the league last season, but they can certainly beat Toronto at least.
They’ll get both Miami and Milwaukee at home, which gives Detroit a fighting chance, but unless there are injuries or other unforeseen circumstances, the away teams will be heavily favored in the Motor City.
Which NBA Cup group is the toughest?
You can certainly make an argument that the Pistons group is the toughest in the East, though East Group A is also very good with the Knicks, 76ers and Magic atop the Nets and Hornets.
East Group C seems the weakest with the Celtics, Cavaliers, Bulls, Hawks and Wizards. There is a very good chance that all three of those bottom teams stink next season.
The Western Conference has two exciting groups, as group B has the Thunder, Suns, Lakers, Jazz and Spurs. This could be the toughest depending on what kind of leap the Spurs make, as they aren’t going to be cake walk.
Group C has the Nuggets, Mavericks, Pelicans, Warriors and Grizzlies and has an argument as the toughest overall, as all of these teams expect to compete for playoff spots and the Grizzlies are way better than their record from last season.
Group A is probably the weakest but still very good with the Timberwolves, Clippers, Kings, Rockets and Trail Blazers. You can see the whole NBA Cup schedule here.
Progress for the Detroit Pistons would be winning a couple of their games and being competitive in all of them, as they have to show they can hang with some of the better teams in the East, or at least the mediocre ones.