Over the last five years, the Detroit Pistons have not had the liberty of debating potential lineups due to injuries and a sheer lack of talent.
We were not able to look at strengths and weaknesses and attempt to pair playing styles with one another. Thanks to some signings and roster moves from Trajan Langdon, we might actually be able to have a few different lineup possibilities. JB Bickerstaff didn't release the starting lineup during Monday’s Media Day, but let’s take a look some lineups that may also work for Detroit.
Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Simone Fontecchio, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren
We’ll start with the most likely scenario. Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Simone Fontecchio, Tobias Harris, and Jalen Duren. One commonality you’ll notice in all of these lineups is Cade, Tobias and Duren. Cade is getting the start ten times out of ten. Detroit paid Tobias starter money so he will at least begin the year starting, and Duren is still the best walking double-double down low. Those three can be all but locked into the starting lineups.
Outside of those three, Ivey and Fontecchio get the nod in this case. Ivey, just like Duren, has a lot to prove this year, and the spacing of Cade, Simone and Tobias might allow him to play his ideal game. His downhill attacking is his strength and Ivey can be a weapon attacking the basket in the half court or transition. Due to JB’s comments about staggering, I would assume that Ivey would only play with this lineup for a few minutes, hit the bench, and then lead the second unit.
As mentioned, Fontecchio would bring extra spacing, scoring, and decent defense to this starting five. The 29 year old was one of the best corner shooters in the league last year, so his mere presence would open the lane for Ivey and Duren.
Strengths of this lineup: Shooting/Spacing
Weaknesses: Defense, Rebounding
Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Ausar Thompson, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren
It should first be mentioned that Ausar Thompson is going to miss training camp, as he has still not been cleared for full contract drills after missing the end of last season with blood clots, so this assumes it is all precautionary and that he's back in the lineup by the regular season.
In lineup number two, Cade, Ivey, Harris and Duren all get the nod once again. We’ve also already discussed the reasoning for Ivey to be in the starting lineup thanks to his ability to draw fouls, get down the court, and heat up from deep. The difference here is the insertion of Ausar Thompson into the starting five over Simone Fontecchio.
The trade off here is apparent, in that Ausar gives the lineup an insane jump in athleticism (no pun intended) and defense. Ausar, as a 20/21 year old rookie, showed time and time again that he is a great defender, and has the upside of being an elite defender capable of making the All-Defensive team.
What they gain in leaping and defending, they definitely lose in shooting, however. Ausar was known as a struggling shooter when he was drafted, and it might have actually been worse than most people thought. 20-25 percent three point shooting would have been terrible, but somewhat expected. Ausar shot just 18% from three.
He did, however, show some progress as the year went on, shooting 28 percent for a month or so towards the end of the season, but this lineup would then rely heavily on Cade continuing his hot shooting, Ivey figuring his consistency issues out, and Harris being a big-time scorer once again in Detroit.
Strengths: Defense, Transition, Speed/Athleticism, Rebounding
Weaknesses: Shooting, Ball-Handling
Cade Cunningham, Ausar Thompson, Simone Fontecchio, Tobias Harris, Jalen Duren
The final lineup that JB Bickerstaff could pivot to is easily the largest of the options above. In this case, the trio of Cade/Harris/Duren start again, but Ivey finds himself likely as the 6th man. Ausar Thompson assumes the 2-guard spot, and Fontecchio would occupy the small forward role. In this lineup, Cade would be our smallest player on the court at 6-foot-6. That would be the beauty of it. Everyone in this lineup, theoretically, would be 100 percent switchable. This combination would be truly positionless.
Additionally, thanks to Fontecchio’s average-to-good defending, Ausar’s elite defensive abilities, and Cade’s and Fontecchio’s shooting and Harris’ scoring, there is a great balance of scoring and defending coming from this lineup. As mentioned in our first lineup option, JB has discussed the staggering of Cade and Ivey. What would likely happen in this scenario is, Ausar or Simone would be pulled after five to ten minutes to make way for Ivey. Cade and Ivey would run the offense for a spell, and Cade would eventually come out, allowing for Ivey to act as primary ball handler and initiator.
This is the lineup I hope to see on opening night.