The Pistons have questions about Ron Holland's long-term fit on the team, but one thing they can never question is his confidence. Holland has always been willing to display his skills on offense, even his shot doesn't fall. In contrast, the Pistons' other young wing Ausar Thompson has lacked confidence in his offensive game and is often too passive to make an impact on that end.
Ausar can take a page from Ron's book
No matter the results, the Pistons absolutely need Thompson to be more aggressive next season. The Pistons can gauge how much of an upgrade they need elsewhere on the roster only after getting a good sense of Ausar's offensive capabilities. At the moment, Detroit doesn't even know what Ausar is fully capable of offensively because he's been so hesitant to take shots or handle the ball during his career.
The most obvious comparison in offensive aggression between Holland and Thompson is their overall field goal attempts. Last season, Thompson averaged just 8 per game in 26 minutes per game while Holland took 7 attempts per game in just 20 minutes per game. It's hard to imagine that Holland wouldn't get up more shots per game if they played the same minutes.
Additionally, Holland is a much more willing 3-point shooter. Thompson has never been confident from that range and last season was the worst example yet, as he took just 0.3 threes per game. But Holland was more confident than ever, letting 2.5 attempts per game fly. That was even in spite of Holland shooting just 25% from deep; he never let his percentage affect his confidence on open looks.
Holland obviously needs to improve his efficiency when shooting to avoid becoming a throwaway piece for the Pistons. But his confidence isn't necessarily a bad thing for gathering data. Say what you will about Ron, but at least the Pistons can be sure of his current offensive ability because he's always willing to showcase it when he touches the floor.
Confidence can manifest differently for Ausar
Even with full confidence, Ausar Thompson probably shouldn't be playing exactly like Ron Holland. Both have the elite athleticism and fastbreak burst to attack the rim relentlessly, but Ausar has also shown flashes of better decision-making in the past. When the Pistons demand more from him offensively, hopefully they will see an uptick in his assists as well as his scoring.
We need to see Ausar be more confident as a ball-handler next season. An uptick in his shooting would also be nice, since his form has looked surprisingly smooth when he doesn't have time to doubt himself. But more aggression attacking the rim and setting up shots both for himself and teammates should be the main goal.
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