Outlook:
An offseason consists of trades, workouts, rebuilding through draft, and free agency. Most contenders are mainly concerned with retaining their free agents and making their team better through trades and/or free agency. Most teams that are weak and aren’t looked at as playoff teams build through the draft. But when it comes down to it, the Detroit Pistons are a little bit of both. A lot of critics would argue that the Pistons are closer to the bottom then they are to the top, but most of us fans would tend to argue that statement saying that we have a lot of talent and what it takes to be true contender in the East. We just need to make the right moves, in what we call the offseason.
This is the most important time for the Pistons to be making the correct moves. Our organization can’t just make draft picks or sign free agents based on assumption and the most popular name anymore. Look at teams that have made underrated runs in the East that have made the playoffs the last couple of years: the Toronto Raptors, Milwaukee Bucks, and even the Atlanta Hawks. They all did it without a true superstar and if you’re looking in the eyes of SVG (Stan Van Gundy), you’re trying to make a run for their money and make it as far as those franchises have, so you have to see that one superstar isn’t the only solution.
It’s been proven over the years past that if an NBA team has a lot of core players that have good chemistry, can play defense, and run through the flow of the offense efficiently, it can be a winning team and compete with the best in the league, and as a Pistons fan you want nothing more. Yeah, there are a lot of really talented individuals that surface in this league, but the Pistons don’t have one of those players who has the proven ability of taking a game over. Some argue Brandon Jennings is gaining that ability, but you can’t put the pressure situations on a guy who is just recovering from a ruptured left Achilles tendon. And if you’re SVG, you also can’t put the back of the team on someone like Andre Drummond who, as of now, only has the ability to catch lobs, get tip ins, and grab offensive boards at ease on the offensive end.
The point made shows that the Detroit Pistons don’t have a superstar in any sorts and the only way to turn around this franchise to the point where we can start calling ourselves contenders again, is to get a lot talented individuals and building a team of mainly role players who can get the job done. The Pistons need to build a team, compared to what the Hawks have been doing down in Atlanta. So far Van Gundy has done a great job to the start of that rebuild, by already acquiring big man, Ersan Illyasova, who is going to fit nicely into what we are doing here by spacing the floor, giving Andre more room to work with, as well as more options with the mid-range jumper. Stan Van Gundy has done this before in Orlando, bring them to a Finals appearance in 2010. He looks to do the same, if not more in Detroit and it all starts right now with the NBA Draft.
NBA DRAFT:
The NBA Draft consists of a lot of talented players at each of their respected positions this year. Any team that is in the lottery (1-14) will have the opportunity to draft a talented individual that could make a true difference in whether their team can get over the hump of where they want to be or not. There are sleepers and there are overrated peaces in every draft.
The Pistons need, and mostly all fans would agree, is the small forward position. The only SF that is under contract as of now is Cartier Martin, who just recently picked up his player option to stay one more year in Detroit. He isn’t anything remote to a starter and isn’t a true bench player. Cartier is mainly just a fill in guy so when it comes down to the start of the season we can say that we have 13 players on the roster. So really Detroit has 2 small forwards in need that SVG needs to place on this team before the season and what better can he do then select one in the 2015 NBA Draft. Now the Detroit Pistons have the 8th pick in the draft. Three, if not more small forwards are expected to be chosen within the first ten picks, which means there’s a lot of talent when it comes down to who we select. When it comes to being a Pistons fan, we tend to dream out of the ordinary and expect way more than what is reality. But it’s all going to come down to three guys and if they don’t choose one of the three I will be completely shocked and most likely confused. Here’s a mini scouting report on the following 3 prospects in which one of them is bound to be wearing the red, white, and blue across their chest on Thursday the 25th.
Justice Winslow
Now this is the least likely of the following possibilities to happen. Justice Winslow is looked at as the best small forward in the draft this year. Winslow is a 6’6″ stretch 3 with a solid build of 222 lbs that has the ability of driving to the rack with precision. He averaged 12.6 points per game shooting a decent 49% from the field and plays fantastic defense. Although he struggles at the line, only shooting just above 64%, he is the most NBA ready small forward that’s available, which is why I don’t see him falling to 8 in the draft. But on the slim chance that he does, he would be a huge steal for this franchise and would really boost to what Stan Van Gundy is trying to implement. He’s the one guy that you can pick without even questioning it because of his starstruck abilities. Justice Winslow is one of the most coveted players out there and if there is any chance to get him whatsoever I don’t see SVG passing on him.
Mario Hezonja
Mario is a kid that will be an under the radar pick for any team that drafts him. He is a 6’8″ 200 pound small forward from Croatia, that could also play a bit of shooting guard with the athletic build that he brings to the table. This kid is believed to be something beyond special. Reports and speculations say that Hezonja has the potential to be the best guard/small forward to come out of the European League ever. He played a total of 3 seasons in the Euro League; and even though he didn’t have the best average for his points per game due to lack of minutes, he did make up for it by shooting an average of 45% from the field in his 3 seasons of play. His stock has kept rising over the last few weeks and has shown the ability that he could be an elite scorer in the league, so much that some scouts believe he could be taken off the board as early as one of the top five players in the draft.
In my opinion, I don’t trust a guy that we haven’t seen play in the United States. Also, the paces of the game and the way the NBA and the European League run their offenses are much different and I ultimately believe that Mario isn’t going to be able to transition himself enough to be elite or even to be a contributor for a winning organization. In that case, I wouldn’t risk it or even bite on a guy like this when you have other well-known athletes that have been a proven NCAA success and a guy that will most likely be on the board when the Pistons are set to select, Stanley Johnson. But, that’s not my choice and Mario could end up being who we select if he falls to us.
Stanley Johnson
Stanley is my favorite out of the three, and is looked at as being the best fit for our young, talented team that SVG has been forming and I’ll tell you why. Johnson is a 6’7″ 245 pound small forward that is looking to give any team his hard work, dedication, and his one hundred percent mentality on and off the court each and every day. He averaged 13.8 points per game, 6.5 rebounds and just under 2 assists per game. He shot just under 45% last season; which he would need to work on that, but I think that would be the easiest thing to develop out of anything with such a young prospect. I know I said that Mario made up for his points with his shooting in the last paragraph, but in this case that just proves that in Stanley’s first year he averaged as much as a 3 year player, which shows that it looks that he’ll develop at a much faster rate then Hezonja. And it’s not like Hezonja raised his shooting percentage much last season in the Euro League; in which he only shot 45.7%. Johnson is also a full year younger than Mario as well which makes a whole lot of a difference and raised the plateau of Stanley’s performance over Mario that much more.
I don’t mean to overload you with all the comparisons, showing that Stanley has better potential, but recently the two have been centered around for the Pistons selection and it’s fair to back up the better player. But there’s one big thing that shows that the Pistons would be in a much better situation with Stanley instead of Mario. Stanley can play defense. He can guard the 2-4 with no problem. Yeah, the collegiate level is much weaker when it comes to post players, but Stanley is already a big fella and could gain even more muscle before training camp and before the season begins. Overall, I think Stanley Johnson is the best fit. If Justise Winslow is available I’d rather take him, but in the most likely scenario Winslow will already be selected, Johnson would be the best pick for our Detroit Pistons hands down.
RYAN RAVER MOCK DRAFT 1.0
1. Minnesota Timberwolves- Karl-Anthony Towns, PF, Kentucky
2. Los Angeles Lakers- Jahlil Okafor, C, Duke
3. Philadelphia 76ers- D’Angelo Russell, SG, Ohio State
4. New York Knicks- Emmanuel Mudiay, PG, DR Congo
5. Orlando Magic- Kristaps Porzingis, PF, Latvia
6. Sacramento Kings- Mario Hezonja, SF, Croatia
7. Denver Nuggets- Justise Winslow, SF, Duke
8. Detroit Pistons- Stanley Johnson, SF, Arizona
9. Charlotte Hornets- Devin Booker, SG, Kentucky
10. Miami Heat- Cameron Payne, PG, Murray State
11. Indiana Pacers- Willie Cauley-Stein, C, Kentucky
12. Utah Jazz- Frank Kaminsky, PF, Wisconsin
13. Phoenix Suns- Myles Turner, PF, Texas
14. Oklahoma City Thunder- Kelly Oubre, SF, Kansas
15. Atlanta Hawks- Trey Lyles, PF, Kentucky
16. Boston Celtics- Bobby Portis, PF, Arkansas
17. Milwaukee Bucks- Sam Dekker, SF, Wisconsin
18. Houston Rockets- Tyus Jones, PG, Duke
19. Washington Wizards- Kevon Looney, PF, UCLA
20. Toronto Raptors- Justin Anderson, SG, Virginia
21. Dallas Mavericks- Terry Rozier, PG, Louisville
22. Chicago Bulls- Jerian Grant, SG, Notre Dame
23. Portland Trailblazers- Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, SF, Arizona
24. Cleveland Cavaliers- Montrezl Harrell, C, Louisville
25. Memphis Grizzlies- Anthony Brown, SF, Stanford
26. San Antonio Spurs- Jarell Martin, F, LSU
27. Los Angeles Lakers- Rashad Vaughn, SG, UNLV
28. Boston Celtics- R.J. Hunter, SG, Georgia State
29. Brooklyn Nets- Chris McCullough, PF, Syracuse
30. Golden State Warriors- Jonathon Holmes, PF, Texas
Detroit Pistons Nation 