The Pistons have been dominant all season under any circumstances, but their postseason ceiling could be determined by Ausar Thompson's offensive growth. As NBA analyst Zach Lowe recently discussed, Thompson's aggression as a scorer and initiator will make or break the Pistons' best lineup in the playoffs. His offense will be key to playing him alongside Jalen Duren and enabling the Pistons' best defense.
Ausar Thompson needs to hold his own offensively
Thompson has been exceptional as a defender all season long. He recently won Eastern Conference Defensive Player of the Month for January for his defensive playmaking. In that month, he led the entire NBA with 2.4 steals per game. On top of his ability to force turnovers, Ausar has regularly shut down star players on opposing teams.
He's played at an All-Defense level this season, but his limited offensive game could cap his impact. Despite the Pistons' absolutely dominant regular season so far, playoff success is far from guaranteed. They still have some key weaknesses that opponents can exploit over a 7-game series, including Ausar's offensive woes.
Ausar has shown a lot of defensive growth this season, but the expected offensive leap hasn't panned out. He's averaging 10.2 points per game - just 0.1 more than last season and certainly not enough to make him a reliable threat. The Pistons' offense in general has been flawed, and they did not successfully address this issue at the trade deadline.
But the issue is most pertinent for Ausar Thompson because of his importance to the team. Even though Ausar himself is extremely limited offensively, he still has great two-way impact for the Pistons because he forces turnovers that turn into easy baskets. But if he can't find a way to be effective in the halfcourt, the Pistons will be too handicapped playing him alongside their All-Stars in Cade Cunningham and Jalen Duren.
The fit between Thompson and Duren will be especially difficult with both having limited range. Duren is at his best rolling to the rim on pick-and-rolls with Cade, but that space can get clogged by Ausar waiting in the dunker spot. Last year in the playoffs, he found ways to be effective as an opportunistic slasher and offensive rebounder.
But that hasn't translated into his performance this season. Unfortunately, rather than finding creative ways to get the most out of him offensively, the Pistons have often decided to limit his minutes instead. Thompson's playing time at 26 minutes per game have been a source of frustration for many fans. If he wants to earn more time on the court, especially in the playoffs, Ausar Thompson will need to develop a more consistent offensive game.