I didn’t see the game but my immediate reaction to this lineup is that it looks fun and why did they sign Tobias again?
I don’t think JB is a top tier coach but he is a legit NBA head coach, particularly defensively. I’d expect a massive leap in “organization” on D
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They need wing players who can provide spacing. You can take as much as you can get to truly evaluate the young core.
JB might not be a guy who can get you to be a championship level team, but Detroit right now is just looking to not be the worst team in the league, and preferably not one of the worst 5 teams in the league. I think having a coach who wants to actually coach will be a big improvement.
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They needed to spend money to get to the cap floor. They needed vet players who actually seem to play more games than they miss because of injury. And they needed to find guys who actually wanted to be in Detroit to make the team better rather than just put up stats so a contender wanted them at the deadline.
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Yes, I’ve basically been saying this since the hire. The level at which JB fizzles is one the Pistons can only currently fantasize of (being a 4 seed)
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There will be time for Harris. It was only 1 game but THJ was showing why he couldn’t get run on the Mavs. I’m sure he will be streaky but he didn’t look good.
I would focus on that part and the fact that it’s preseason. There is zero reason to form any conclusions based upon preseason games let alone only one of them.
There is a large body of work for THJ. You know what you’re going to get. And part of what you will get is clunker games mixed in with games where he’s hot. It isn’t a mystery to make projections about.
He got a lot of run for the Mavs during the regular season. Pistons don’t need to worry about having a player who can contribute to a condensed playoff rotation.
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I don’t think this is a Joe Harris situation for TIMMAY. Joe was cooked, and Tim still has life in his legs.
I think THj will be more of a deep bench guy. Beasley will get those minutes. Timmay is probably 10th-12th in minutes.
10th-12th? Who do you see getting guard minutes besides Ivey, Cade and Beasley?
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I think we’ll see more Ausar at the two. Maybe spot minutes for Sasser and Hardaway. Maybe wishcasting but I think we’ll see a Reed-Stewart frontcourt off the bench. And I think Holland will force himself into the rotation.
Most of the guys pegged for the rotation are in the front court, which is why I think Hardaway gets minutes in the backcourt. Their guard room is limited. And while shooting is improved (extremely low bar to exceed from last year), if THJ isn’t in the rotation you still only have two reliable shooters playing minutes. We will see, but I think THJ factors in.
I wouldn’t be surprised (esp early on with Ausar getting back into playing shape.) But I think eventually they’ll just have Ausar and Holland to hound the other team’s best wing scorer for 40 minutes.
I realize this won’t be well-received, but Hardaway was awful in the final 30 games of the season and continued that downspin into the playoffs. He did see his time cut in the playoffs, but that elides the fact that his time had actually started getting cut with 15-20 games to play in the regular season. He’s only 31, but this IS going to be his 12th NBA season, the needle generally points downward at this point for most players, not up.
That said, I think it’s extremely unlikely Hardaway starts the season as deep bench, I think he’ll be the second wing off the bench (assume Beasley is in front of him - Beasley’s shooting, at this stage, is more of a sure thing).
Ausar isn’t a two IMO. He’s more of a 4 than a 2
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I think he’s probably different things defensively and offensively (and probably different things offensively depending on the context of the possession)
Defensively, he can cover 2’s. But, you probably want a little shooting out of your shooting guard. He’s not there yet.
Yes, but his defense is so elite, you have to live with it. Having an actual stretch 4 in Harris will help. And the bench unit will benefit from Stewart playing as a stretch five.
He doesn’t have the handle to be a shooting guard. That’s also the issue with his brother, Amen. Amen essentially played the four at Houston.
I’d settle for 30% from Ausar from 3 but he shot below 20% which is horrific.