Detroit Pistons Early Season Thoughts: Play the Full 48
- Chad Marriott
- Oct 28
- 4 min read
The Detroit Pistons are 2-2 to start the season. At times, the team plays an exciting brand of basketball, featuring suffocating defense, fast breaks, and fluid offense. At other times, their transition defense struggles, and the offense stagnates. During their first nationally televised game this season, the media focused on their lack of three-point shooting. While they are correct that the Pistons haven't shot well (32.8%), they are missing the larger picture: consistency. The Pistons slow starts, transition defense, and stagnating offense are the team's biggest weaknesses.
There has also been some mention of a lack of playmaking. Ausar Thompson has shown that he is capable of that. Additionally, Marcus Sasser and Caris LeVert will also help with that when they return. And, of course, Jaden Ivey will also help. The loss of the veterans (Malik Beasley, Dennis Schröder, and Tim Hardaway Jr.) is important, but the Pistons have players adapting to new roles. Don't panic yet.
The Detroit Pistons Slow Starts
The Pistons allowed at least 33 points in each first quarter this season. They have scored more than 24 points in the first quarter only once. Starting slow is becoming a pattern early in the season, one they need to break. The Pistons would have likely beaten Chicago if they hadn't spot them a 16-point first-quarter lead. They also spotted the Celtics an early lead. The "start slow and catch up later" routine ended against Cleveland. The Cavaliers are too good a team for that.
The Pistons Main Problems
No. It's not three-point shooting. The Pistons' main problems are transition defense, turnovers, and shot selection. They will shoot a better three-point percentage by taking better shots. Too often, the Pistons forced contested or rushed jumpers against Cleveland. They need to work for a better shot, which means more ball and player movement.
The Pistons fell into a pattern of isolation basketball, stagnating their offense. They had several positions of a single player dribbling or alternating between two players on the same side of the court without getting the ball inside the three-point line. That's really easy to defend. This stagnation is compounded against an opponent with strong interior defense (Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen). If those players don't have to rotate or adjust at all, they will easily disrupt isolations.
The turnovers will resolve themselves as the team adjusts to its new group and new roles (Thompson as a ballhandler). The Pistons go through stretches of multiple possessions ending in either turnovers or quick shots, allowing the opposition to get easy fast break buckets. The poor transition defense compounds this issue. Of course, turnovers can lead to easy buckets, but the Pistons have found themselves failing to set up after made baskets. Multiple times, Cleveland rushed the ball up the court and got an early layup. That type of defense is unacceptable for a professional team.
J.B. Bickerstaff will be able to coach the team through the growing pains of turnovers, awkward offensive possessions, and inconsistent shooting, but he must eliminate the poor transition defense.
Pistons Playmakers: Ausar Thompson, Jaden Ivey, and Ron Holland
The Pistons have a star in the making in Ausar Thompson. He's going to be a stellar ball player. His ability to play off the ball, handle the point guard role, and defend the other team's best player makes him extremely valuable. He rebounds, passes, and scores. His one weakness is his outside shooting.
Ron Holland is developing into another playmaking option. His issue is that he's still learning to play at multiple speeds. Holland can play at an incredible pace; however, his next step is to learn when to slow down. In the modern game, no one will say slowing down and working for a shot is a good thing, especially if the team doesn't have good three-point shooting, but the Pistons would benefit from Holland learning when to slow down or look for a teammate early.
The Pistons miss Jaden Ivey for his ability to handle the ball. Ivey would give the Pistons an option to bring up the ball with speed instead of physicality and angles (Cunningham and Thompson do this). Cleveland applied full-court pressure on Monday night. They wouldn't be able to do that against Ivey. He's too fast, but is also a much better dribbler than Holland. Don't let Thompson's strong start fool you into thinking the Pistons don't need Ivey for his playmaking and shooting.
Detroit Pistons Strong Starts: Cade Cunningham, Jalen Duren, and Isaiah Stewart
Cade Cunningham, Jalen Duren, and Isaiah Stewart have also started strong. Cunningham didn't have his best game against the Cavs, but that's what will happen if the Pistons rely on him too much. He averaged 23 points and nine assists per game through the first three matchups.
Duren is averaging 13.3 points and 9.3 rebounds per game, including a 24-point and 18-rebound performance against the Celtics. Duren's next step is to keep his head in the game and avoid trying to do too much. He had four turnovers in each of the last two games.
Stewart is averaging 9.3 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, including a 20-point and 10-rebound performance against Chicago. Stewart's three-point shooting looks better, but he must be careful not to take too many. He loses his effectiveness as a player when he's hovering around the three-point line.
Detroit Pistons: The Full 48
The team has serious potential. The media will focus on the three-point shooting, but that will work itself out. The team needs to focus on shot selection, transition defense, and taking care of the basketball. More importantly, these points of emphasis need to begin at the start of the game and last throughout the entire game. This is a young team, so they won't be perfect, but when the Detroit Pistons play the full 48 minutes at the level they are capable of, they can compete with any team in the NBA.
(All stats provided by Basketball Reference)
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