If there is anything the Detroit Pistons have been good at over the last five seasons it is disappointing their fans.
From prospects who never made it, signings who never lived up to even modest hype and highly-paid coaches who never showed up.
We won’t be fooled again.
I’ve been covering the Pistons for about five years now and I have never seen less optimism and/or excitement for a season than this one. We’ve been burned too many times to go all in on a prospect, to believe a young player is going to magically turn into a star, to think a washed-up veteran signing will move the needle.
In the spirit of that pessimism, let’s look at four Detroit Pistons who could add to the disappointment, whether it is through role, development or what they will bring to the Pistons.
Ron Holland II
This has less to do with Holland and more about fans’ wild and unrealistic expectations for rookies, something that has plagued the Pistons over recent years.
Holland was a surprise with the 5th pick and there were guys on the board (Dalton Knecht, Donovan Clingan) who could have helped the Pistons right away and will look like competent NBA players before Holland does.
Queue the “we should have taken Knecht!” Tweets as soon as he scores 20 points in a game.
Pistons fans are used to seeing their draft picks inserted directly into the starting five, but that’s not going to happen with Holland and there is a good chance he’ll start the season on the fringes (or even out of) the rotation.
There is also a chance he spends time in the G-League this season, which isn’t the worst thing in the world, as the Pistons have had little success throwing players directly into the fire out of the draft.
There will be fans eager to call Trajan Langdon’s first draft pick a bust, you know the ones, who care more about being right on one of their “hot takes” than they do about the team. But they will be loud if Holland isn’t playing, and some fans will be disappointed that Holland isn’t great right away because that’s how fans are.
Tim Hardaway Jr.
The disappointment for this one will be tempered by the fact that not many out there believe THJ is any good.
When fans of other teams are happy they traded a guy away and are offering condolences to the team that got him, it’s never a good sign.
A veteran shooter whose best days are behind him but can theoretically spread the floor? Where have I heard this one before?
Joe Harris was the same age last offseason when the Pistons took on his salary dump in exchange for second-round picks, same as THJ this offseason.
Harris was coming off a productive season that had seen him lose a step, same as THJ, who shot 35 percent from 3-point range last season. The big difference is that Hardaway Jr. is healthier and should at least be able to stay on the floor.
It won’t be a huge disappointment if he can’t, as fans would rather see the young guys than a placeholder vet on an expiring deal, but it would be a major disappointment if the Pistons wasted a big chunk of cap space on another guy who can’t play just for second-round picks, especially when they inexplicably gave away Quentin Grimes (a guy who can play) in the deal.
Between THJ’s salary and the remaining $10 million the Pistons have in cap space right now, they could have signed a real player, so it will be disappointing if the Pistons continue to disregard wins for 2nd-round picks.
Tobias Harris
Tobias Harris has some things going for him that Bojan Bogdanovic did not, namely that he’s mostly been healthy in his career and isn’t a complete traffic cone on defense.
But other than that, it has the same vibe, as Bogdanovic was brought in to be the stabilizing veteran force just as Harris was this offseason.
There is no doubt that Harris will score points, just as Bogdanovic did, but is he really going to move the needle or are we going to spend the next two years putting Harris in trade rumors like we did with Bojan?
It’s likely to be the latter, as Philly fans couldn’t wait to see the back of Harris and he’s going to end up in the same role as Bogdanovic, the guy who fans will start accusing of taking shots from the young guys, the veteran who holds the ball too long, who becomes their go-to in clutch time and whose defense is on the decline. He's primed to be a scapegoat if the Pistons don't improve.
I hope Harris’ time in Detroit turns out better than Bogdanovic’s did, but it’s easy to see a similar outcome with a waning veteran on a bad young team who ends up traded for pennies on the dollar as an expiring contract.
Jaden Ivey
Like Holland, this has less to do with Ivey and more to do with the context, as it’s easy to see him as the odd man out next season.
The Pistons added veterans who can shoot and it’s likely JB Bickerstaff is going to lean on them early, especially considering the Pistons have a brutal early schedule.
That could leave Ivey coming off the bench as the backup point guard, which wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world, as he could thrive in that role, and if he does, he might have a long-term future with the Pistons.
But what if he doesn’t? What if Ivey isn’t happy with that role and starts moping around? What if he’s getting benched at the ends of games (very likely) in favor of Malik Beasley and Tim Hardaway Jr.?
Fans want Ivey to evolve into a star but that’s not going to be easy as long as he’s on a team with Cade Cunningham.
If Ivey will accept a backup role, that could be his route to a lucrative second contract, especially if he is scoring efficiently and shows he can run the offense for stretches.
But given Trajan Langdon did not draft him and that Ivey is extension-eligible next summer, he won’t get endless patience.
There is a world in which Jaden Ivey can thrive for the Pistons, but there is also one in which fans are going to be disappointed when he has a lesser role and ends up traded.