If you count yourself among the many Detroit Pistons fans whose frustrations with this season have resulted in countless Google searches for what players are on the trade markets, which teams are looking for a complete overhaul, and which player/team combo makes for such an obvious fit, you may want to make better use of your time.
Pistons President of basketball operations and head coach Stan Van Gundy sees no reason for the Pistons, who currently sit at 20-24 and tenth in the Eastern Conference, to shake the roster up.
“The hard thing is I think this group has enough talent to be a lot better than we are,” Van Gundy told the Detroit Free Press. “I think we have enough talent to make a run. It has been hard to judge them because we just haven’t been together and played as a group.
“I think, in general, it would have to be a deal, at least in our minds, that is a pretty obvious step forward. We’re not looking to make change for the sake of making change.”
One area the Pistons could certainly use some help in is on the defensive side of the ball. They need to make it tougher for teams to get good looks, and get better at communicating on the defensive end. Currently the Pistons are allowing teams to shoot 45.8 percent from the floor, which is tied for the 17th worst in the NBA with two other teams.
If the poor effort and losing continue however, Van Gundy might be forced to make a move, and by then, he might even be open to it.
“As you get closer to the deadline [Feb. 23], the playoff race gets a little clearer and you’re talking about what everybody says is a very good (2017) draft,” Van Gundy told The Detroit News. “People’s priorities could change more in the next three weeks or so. You just don’t know. Jeff Bower’s job is to keep talking to 29 other GMs and know what’s out there.”
What exactly will be out there come the February 23rd deadline has yet to be seen, but it might be something the Pistons just can’t pass up.
