5 Most important positional battles for the Pistons next season
JB Bickerstaff will have a tough balancing act next season, as he tries to push the Detroit Pistons forward while also developing his young players.
Trajan Langdon has made it clear that he’s not going to rush things along, so the focus will likely be on the latter, but player development will also depend on a more complementary roster and better veterans who can help get the most out of the young players.
It will be tough to balance minutes while putting optimal lineups on the floor to maximize the strengths of Cade Cunningham, who signed a max extension this summer and is so far the only building block they’ve committed to long term.
A tough early schedule may lead coach Bickerstaff to playing more veterans, even in the starting lineup, but the rotation will likely be fluid throughout the season, especially post trade deadline if the Pistons end up selling off some of their expiring contracts.
Related Story. Revenge, twins and bottom feeders: 5 Pistons games you don't want to miss. Revenge, twins and bottom feeders: 5 Pistons games you don't want to miss. dark
Improvement from the young players could help make these decisions easier, but at the start of the season, the Pistons are going to have battles for minutes at plenty of positions.
Starting shooting guard
-Jaden Ivey
-Malik Beasley
-Tim Hardaway Jr.
-Ausar Thompson
This will be the first indication of how Bickerstaff views Jaden Ivey. Is he the starting complement to Cade Cunningham or better served coming off the bench?
If he wants to maximize shooting around Cade, then one of the veterans might get the nod, especially early on, which might not be the worst thing for Ivey, who can then run the second unit as the lead guard.
If I had to bet, I’d say Jaden Ivey will be the opening-night starter and he’ll be staggered with Cade so that one of them is always on the floor.
This is the year Ivey has to prove he can be Cade’s sidekick in the starting backcourt, and it’s his spot to lose, but I wouldn’t be shocked to see Bickerstaff use a veteran here, at least at the start of the season.
There’s also a world in which Ausar Thompson starts at the two with Simone Fontecchio and Tobias Harris at the forward spots if Bickerstaff wants to go bigger and maximize his perimeter defense.