Love/hate for 7 key Detroit Pistons and Monty Williams

Simone Fontecchio 

Love: The way he connects lineups 

Hate: His toe 

Simone Fontecchio was a part of the Pistons’ two best five-man lineups this season, with his shooting and defense giving Detroit a boost on both ends. The problem is that we didn’t get to see much of it, as a toe contusion has limited Fontecchio to just 16 games as a Piston with him inactive for the last 11 games and counting. 

You never know how real or serious these kinds of veteran late-season injuries are, as the Pistons may have just shut Fontecchio down to keep him healthy before they re-sign him this offseason. But it would have been nice to get more data about how he fits with the core and whether he might be a starter next season. 

Fontecchio was a positive and one of Troy Weaver’s better acquisitions, but like all things with the Pistons, there is always a catch, which is that Detroit doesn’t know if they are getting the guy who shot 33 percent from long range last season, or the guy who was lights out in a tiny sample size.