Let’s get on that Bob Ross time and paint a picture here.
The Detroit Pistons entered the 2019-20 NBA Season with expectations to build off of last year’s (albeit brief) playoff appearance, especially with the addition of former NBA MVP Derrick Rose, three-point shooting specialist Tony Snell, the gritty and dependable Markieff Morris, and another year forward in the development of Luke Kennard.
Instead, what we’ve gotten has been a season that’s quickly gotten stale. A bevy of injuries to key players including Blake Griffin and Reggie Jackson put Detroit behind the 8-ball before the year even began; Griffin missed the first 10 games and more time since then with a left-leg injury, while Jackson has played only twice due to a back injury.
Kennard is now on the shelf with knee tendinitis.
While both Rose and Kennard have been positives, the team is losing far too often to bad teams. Last night’s loss against the Los Angeles Clippers dropped their record to 12-23, 11th in the Eastern Conference.
It doesn’t help their case that they’ve lost three games against the Central Division rival Chicago Bulls. They’ve also dropped games against the Charlotte Hornets and Washington Wizards, all of whom are going to miss the playoffs short of a miracle.
To add insult to injury, the Wizards put up 133 points on the Pistons last month; the most they’ve allowed in a regulation game since the mid-1990’s teal era. That was followed up by allowing 136 to an average San Antonio Spurs team last week.
It sure doesn’t look like there are going to be any Motor City miracles this season, either.
With the uncertainty surrounding center Andre Drummond’s future in Detroit, a hobbled Griffin and a mixture of younger talent still waiting to take the next step, there’s no sense in the team trying to delude the fan base into thinking they can still make noise in the Eastern Conference.
