In a new phase of a seemingly never-ending rebuild cycle, the Detroit Pistons have a lot to build off of from a forgettable 2023-24 season. Setting a franchise-worst regular season record, showing little to no player devolpment, and firing head coach Monty Williams after making him the highest paid coach in NBA history all summed up how the season went in the Motor City.
Luckily for Detroit, a revamped front office and newly constructed roster give fans hope that next season may show signs of growth. Playoffs are most likely too far ahead to expect, but the question, however, is what would make the 2024-25 NBA season considered a "win" for the young Pistons?
Improved Three-Point Shooting
The most apparent problem with the Pistons offense this past season was the lack of spacing, making for poor 3PT efficiency. Shooting only 34.8 percent from deep-range, Detroit ranked 26th amongst all teams in 3PT percentage. Obviously you shouldn't expect one of the youngest teams in the league to be deadly from downtown, but you also don't expect a team with a star playmaker running the floor to shoot as badly as they did. Former GM Troy Weaver did a horrendous job at surrounding Cade Cunningham with proper spacing, as the team made the second-least amount of three's compared to all teams. Players like Ausar Thompson, Jaden Ivey, and Evan Fournier shot at very poor efficiency based off of what you would expect from them.
Despite the struggles this past season, there seems to be new outlook for the season to come in Detroit. Since being hired as the President of Basketball Operations in May, Trajan Langdon has attacked this probelm in specific. Adding notable shooters such as Tim Hardaway Jr., Malik Beasley along with Tobias Harris who has the ability to stretch the floor as a power forward, there is already more options for Cunningham compared to what he was working with before. These three additions to the team set the expectation for improved three-point shooting this next season and shows a willingness from the front office to address the glaring issue.
On top of these player additions, Langdon also added respected assistant coach Fred Vinson to help fix the lackluster shooting. With that being said, for next season to be considered a win by any means, we will have to see this expectation met. Anywhere from 36-37 percent team shooting from deep would, in my eyes, show a large jump in this field and would make for a successful season.