The Detroit Pistons are sitting atop the Eastern Conference after 10 games, not a spot many predicted them to be, but they are 8-2 after winning six straight.
The wildest part about this start as the Pistons haven’t been anywhere near full strength during any of it, as Jaden Ivey and Marcus Sasser have yet to play, Caris LeVert has been limited (looked good last night), Tobias Harris has had to miss several games, and now Isaiah Stewart is on the mend.
It’s been a team effort through and through, with just about everyone chipping in at some point and unsung heroes all over the place. It seems like the perfect time to make some observations, most of which will be wildly optimistic, so buckle up. But let's start with a small reality check.
The Pistons have played an easy schedule
Before the season started, it looked as if the Pistons had a tough opening week, but not everything was as it seemed. The Magic have started slowly, the Mavericks are injured and terrible, and the Grizzlies are a mess, so three tough games weren’t so tough.
The Pistons have only played three good teams, the Bulls (are they good?), Rockets and Cavaliers and lost two of them. After that, they’ve beaten up on the dregs of the league with wins over the Jazz, Nets and 76ers without Embiid.
The good news is that the schedule doesn’t really pick up until after Christmas, and hopefully by then the Pistons are fully healthy, as things get tough after the new year when they start playing the elite teams from the Western Conference.
The Pistons need to keep winning and building a lead now with 13 of their next 14 games against teams in the East.
Cade Cunningham is a legit MVP candidate
There aren’t too many players playing better than Cade Cunningham at the moment. He’s scoring, distributing, getting it done in clutch time, taking care of the ball and playing very good defense on top of it.
He won’t get the votes, but if the Pistons can stay in the top four of the Eastern Conference, he’ll finish in the top five.
Jalen Duren is an All-star
I don’t know if any Pistons player has been more impressive through 10 games than Duren, who is making Cade’s life a lot easier by stepping up as a second star.
Duren is close to 20 points and 12 rebounds per game, dishing out 1.5 assists and as many blocks. He’s been fully engaged on defense and close to unstoppable on offense. He’s dominating the offensive glass, getting a ton of second-chance points and killing it at the free-throw line.
This young man is about to make his first All-Star team and get a fat raise at the end of the season.
The Pistons have 3 players in the running for Most Improved Player
Right now, this award looks like Jalen Duren’s to lose, but there are other Pistons who will garner consideration if they keep this up.
Isaiah Stewart has been a defensive stopper and is knocking down 3-point shots again. The only fault in his game is his inability to stay healthy, which has plagued him throughout his career.
Ausar Thompson is quietly the glue that holds the Pistons together on both ends and is averaging career highs in just about everything. Keep this up, and these three may be battling each other for MIP.
The Pistons are deep
Detroit is 8-2 despite a rash of injuries to key players. They have struggled offensively at times but will soon get a boost from Jaden Ivey and Marcus Sasser.
In the meantime, guys like Javonte Green have stepped up admirably. This team is a lot deeper than it looked on paper.
Health will be a determining factor in the East
Last year came down to a war of attrition that the Pistons lost when they couldn’t stay healthy in the playoffs. The regular season is fine, but this is a playoff team and will be judged by what they do in the second season, so they absolutely have to be healthy heading into the playoffs.
With everything so balanced in the East, it might just be the healthiest team that wins the conference, so the Pistons need to be that team.
The East is there for the taking
As I said to open this, the Pistons haven’t played a tough schedule yet, but have you seen anyone other than Cleveland in the East that looks better than Detroit? Me either.
The Bucks will always be tough for Detroit, and the Pistons will get that first test soon, but if things fall right health-wise, the Pistons could absolutely make it to the conference finals.
The Pistons’ defense is legit
This is a team that believes in itself defensively, and it’s clear this start is not a fluke. They are leading the NBA in just about all paint scoring categories on both ends. They are blocking a ton of shots, and Ausar Thompson and Ron Holland are absolutely tenacious on the wing.
Even if their offense never catches up, Detroit has a top five defense, and that may be enough in the East.
The new faces have been better than the perception but have room to improve
After a slow start, it was declared that the Pistons made a huge mistake by trading for and extending Duncan Robinson (wrong), who is currently averaging 11.2 points per game while shooting 40 percent on 6.5 attempts from long range.
Caris LeVert is still trying to get right from an injury and has been flat-out bad for a few games, but he is shooting 41 percent from long range after hitting four of five last night. He looks to be getting right again, which will give the Pistons a nice boost offensively off the bench.
These two aren’t even playing well yet but are still contributing to wins.
The Pistons have a move to make
I don’t know what it is yet, but the Pistons have the ammo to make a big move to solidify their offense, and if they do, they will be legit contenders in the East.
Detroit hasn’t been at full strength or played well at all offensively and is still 8-2, so Trajan Langdon may see this as the perfect time to make a move to push them over the top.