Official Detroit Pistons thread

[Whitley]

Most head coaches do not move the needle one way or another. This season ended when Cade went down for the year. Everyone knew it. After the AS Break the tank was all hands on deck.

Casey is a knowledgeable and nice guy, glad they kept him in the organization.

But it was time to move on.

There are interesting pieces there. Burks and BB give badly needed outside shooting. BB is very efficient offensively but not good defensively

Duran and Ivey showed a lot of promise. Beef Stew being able to defensively switch on the perimeter enables him to be paired with any of the Pistons bigs

Hayes is the best defensive guard Detroit has and looks to get others involved first and second (which is very important on a team that has a lot of guys that need the ball). Offensively, he seems to be taking the Marcus Smart approach of not being able to shoot first few years in the league. Open question if he can take the jump to decent shooter like Smart did.

There is talent here, but it feels like they are missing THE GUY to bind it all together. Can Cade be that guy? Jury is out there too.

[DanO]

Who's this foreign guy at the top of the draft. My son says he's more highly thought of than Lebron James when he was about to be drafted.

[froot loops]

MSU plays in college, the Pistons play in the NBA. The comparison is not valid.

[Futureshock]

Some Frenchie... J/K.


Victor Wembanyama
French professional basketball player

Victor Wembanyama is a French professional basketball player for Metropolitans 92 of the LNB Pro A. He is widely projected to be the first overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft and is considered one of the greatest prospects of his generation. Wikipedia

Born: January 4, 2004 (age 19 years), Nanterre, France
Height: 7′ 2″

[Futureshock]

MSU plays in college, the Pistons play in the NBA. The comparison is not valid.

Rebounding? They don't rebound in the NBA? Spartans are known to be good rebounders in the league.

The opinion isn't valid.

[froot loops]

He might be the highest rated prospect since LeBron James, but the chance that he's going to be impactful like James has been is very slim. Guys that tall are an iffy proposition,.you certainly want him but there is a reason there are downplaying how tall he is. They think he is closer to 7'5.

[froot loops]

Rebounding? They don't rebound in the NBA? Spartans are known to be good rebounders in the league.

The opinion isn't valid.

What coaches in the NBA actually coach like Tom Izzo in the NBA to do what you are talking about. I think maybe Tom Thibodeaux and that's about it. He wears his welcome out very quickly in the NBA. NBA coaches aren't running war rebound drills. In the NBA you have 82 games and little practice time.

Izzo gets to determine who is on the team, Casey and now his successor has no say in who they get. It is all about the tanking. So they have focused solely on offensively skilled players that aren't good defensively.

They needed a new voice as a coach, but if you think they are going to hire a guy that suddenly makes these players better at rebounding and defense you are going to be mistaken. Most of the players on the team are just not defensive players. They are young and their game has been offense. The only two players who have shown any defensive aptitude are Hayes and Stewart. Most of the fanbase wants Hayes ridden out of town on a rail, Stewart is not that far behind. He's at least the 4th big. Wiseman, Bagley, Duren are what they are counting on and they are not rim.protectors.

[Whitley]

Nah, Stewart is the #3 big there his ability to switch off, and a decent 3 ball, makes him playable with any of the other bigs. Bagley is probably the guy on the way out this offseason. Reasonable contract (25/2 left) decent production. Thibs issue is his personality really wears on players.

Ric Carisle and Steve Kerr are two guys that really coach in the NBA. I don't think you can coach like Izzo does in the NBA, but that doesn't mean that you can't teach those aspects in the game (whether or not they should be taught at the pro level is an entirely another deal).

[Whitley]

He might be the highest rated prospect since LeBron James, but the chance that he's going to be impactful like James has been is very slim. Guys that tall are an iffy proposition,.you certainly want him but there is a reason there are downplaying how tall he is. They think he is closer to 7'5.

James redefined how the game was played on the NBA level. Just like how Curry and the splash brothers did. That is pretty rarified air there.

[ghandi]

Lebron was built like a 30 year old bodybuilder at 17...>Wembayama is thin as a rail.....I'd be a little nervous about him but you have to take the chance.....I guess Antetokuompo was also this thin when he was drafted and was able to bulk up......

[froot loops]

I worry about durability on anyone that tall. People barely remember Ralph Sampson,, he was really good until he got the knee injuries.

I actually don't think LeBron redefined the game in a way Curry did, he's a one of one. You can look at the way games are played and see the effect Curry had in the game, that's because his transformative skill is shooting and that is something that can be mastered by other players. There is nobody like James that has come since him.

[froot loops]

Steve Kerr and Ric Carlisle aren't available. Steve Kerr is a great coach but he walked into a situation with three great defenders. He didn't come in whip.them into defensive shape.

[jaadam4]

Since 1985 only 8 teams won the #1 pick in the lottery that finished last the previous year. 2018 is the last year it happened. I sure as f hope it’s our year

[ghandi]

Since 1985 only 8 teams won the #1 pick in the lottery that finished last the previous year. 2018 is the last year it happened. I sure as f hope it’s our year

There seems to be 3 guys that really stand out in the draft...which means the Pistons will end up with pick 4 or 5.......

[Futureshock]

What coaches in the NBA actually coach like Tom Izzo in the NBA to do what you are talking about. I think maybe Tom Thibodeaux and that's about it. He wears his welcome out very quickly in the NBA. NBA coaches aren't running war rebound drills. In the NBA you have 82 games and little practice time.

Izzo gets to determine who is on the team, Casey and now his successor has no say in who they get. It is all about the tanking. So they have focused solely on offensively skilled players that aren't good defensively.

They needed a new voice as a coach, but if you think they are going to hire a guy that suddenly makes these players better at rebounding and defense you are going to be mistaken. Most of the players on the team are just not defensive players. They are young and their game has been offense. The only two players who have shown any defensive aptitude are Hayes and Stewart. Most of the fanbase wants Hayes ridden out of town on a rail, Stewart is not that far behind. He's at least the 4th big. Wiseman, Bagley, Duren are what they are counting on and they are not rim.protectors.

I was just talking about basic BOXING OUT dude. That's it. Boxing out. You watch them and aside from a few guys, they just stand under the basket like they're playing Cupthrow and the ball bounces off the rim away from them and the opposing team get's the rebound. The teal Pistons weren't very good at boxing out until Uncle Cliff came and all of a sudden they were better. Not stone rebounders, just better. Practice. That's all. They can do it. Any habit can be formed or broken in 21 days. And you don't have to be Hayes or Stewart to box out. Oddly, the player I've seen that boxes out the most consistently is Corey. Sometimes he tried to box out someone 12" taller and the guy just grabs the ball over him, but he tries. Every time. I saw an interview during the season where he said he learned it under Popovich. There's no excuse to not put the effort in.

They do need a new voice and it was a relief to hear Weaver say he wants a defensive voice.