Coming off a 44-win season, the Pistons looked poised to take another step forward in the Eastern Conference in 2016/17, but many of Detroit’s key young contributors didn’t make the improvements the club had anticipated.
Andre Drummond, Reggie Jackson, Tobias Harris, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope – all in their early- to mid-20s – essentially put up the same numbers last season that they did the year before, or took a step backward in terms of overall production. In Jackson’s case, his struggles could be chalked up largely to injury issues, but that doesn’t change the end result — the Pistons slipped in the standings due in large part to the lack of internal growth, finishing the season with a 38-44 mark.
While the team was essentially capped out and couldn’t make major changes over the summer, Detroit did swap out Caldwell-Pope, Marcus Morris, and Aron Baynes for a new group of contributors that includes Avery Bradley, Langston Galloway, and Anthony Tolliver. Rookie marksman Luke Kennard also enters the picture to help make up for losing KCP’s outside shooting.
The Pistons seem hopeful that those roster tweaks – along with improvements from the likes of Jackson, Drummond, and Harris – will allow the team to get back above .500, but oddsmakers aren’t as optimistic. Offshore betting site Bovada has the Pistons’ over/under mark right about where it was last year — 38.5 wins.
What do you think? Is this Pistons team ready to bounce back and get back in the playoff picture out East, or is Detroit in for more of the same this season? Vote below and jump into the comments section to share your thoughts!
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Previous over/under voting results:
- Golden State Warriors: Over 67.5 (53.57%)
- Boston Celtics: Over 55.5 (63.5%)
- Houston Rockets: Over 55.5 (65.57%)
- San Antonio Spurs: Over 54.5 (67.74%)
- Cleveland Cavaliers: Over 53.5 (68.82%)
- Oklahoma City Thunder: Over 50.5 (71.77%)
- Minnesota Timberwolves: Over 48.5 (55.69%)
- Toronto Raptors: Over 48.5 (64.21%)
- Washington Wizards: Over 47.5 (71.29%)
- Milwaukee Bucks: Over 47.5 (63.88%)
- Denver Nuggets: Under 45.5 (50.44%)
- Los Angeles Clippers: Over 43.5 (60.7%)
- Miami Heat: Over 43.5 (55.39%)
- Charlotte Hornets: Over 42.5 (51.07%)
- Portland Trail Blazers: Over 42.5 (56.3%)
- Philadelphia 76ers: Under 41.5 (53.37%)
- Utah Jazz: Over 41.5 (55.94%)
- New Orleans Pelicans: Over 39.5 (65.26%)
Sooo tough to get a read on the Pistons season. I love Avery Bradley and Tobias Harris, and I think Drummond will eventually put it together.
But, what else do they have? Jackson is a little nicked up and who knows what he’ll give them, and Luke Kennard was a terrible draft pick. He’s a poor man’s JJ Redick, who doesn’t shoot as well as Redick. He might do everything pretty good, but to stick in the NBA you’ve got to be great at something if you’re going to be 6-4. It’s got to be quickness or shooting or passing the ball. Something. Scrappy gets you only so far.
Luckily scrappy is the Detroit Pistons middle name.
Great depth, good coach, and are pressed to win. Fighting for the eighth spot they can’t even relax in seventh. A quick over vote for me– but the race is close!
Kennard might have a false height of 6-6 listed (IDK) but he averaged 5 rebs and he wasn’t at Duke to rebound– 44%3, 49%2 &86%1. 722pts on 484 shots.
11 other good-but-not-great players makes for some chaos but not doom.
Xlnt analysis. … a couple questions though…
Good coach, is that because his name is Van Gundy? I’m not disputing, I just have a couple questions like… what has he ever done? I don’t remember Orlando doing anything with him? Let’s see what he does in Detroit…. this is year three or four, right?
(Luke draft combine listed six-four and a half without shoes.)
As a Cavalier fan, Stan VG will always be the guy who looked like a genius, the rare coach who is the difference in a playoff series, in a round of 4 series with Orlando. The Cavs were headed for the finals in 2009, to be Bron vs Kobe, but it was a shocking denial. Next year they ran out of gas and James left. (The Lakers would probably win regardless; they looked then like GSW does now.)
On the other hand, Mike Brown’s defensive scheme set the Orlando forwards free for 3s and maybe it was more about Brown losing it with a bad idea than Vangundy winning it. Also I read on this site he might be overstretched as the GM.
Ok, good stuff. Hope he can get the Pistons going this year. Cheering for him.