The 2022 NBA Draft is in the books and the Detroit Pistons actually walked away with two lottery players, despite only having one first-round pick.
With the No. 5 overall pick, the Pistons selected Jaden Ivey out of Purdue and they then traded for Jalen Duren, who was selected by the Charlotte Hornets with the No. 13 overall pick in the opening round.
I have high hopes for both Ivey and Duren and it got me thinking, who are the best first-round picks for the Pistons since the turn of the century?
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Top 5 Detroit Pistons first-round picks since 2000
Before we get into ranking the Pistons’ Top 5 first-round picks since 2000, let’s take a look at all of the first-round picks the Pistons have had over that span of years. (As you can see, it is not a pretty list)
2000 – Mateen Cleaves (14 overall)
2001 – Rodney White (9 overall)
2002 – Tayshaun Prince (23 overall)
2003 – Darko Milicic (2 overall) and Carlos Delfino (25 overall)
2004 – None
2005 – Jaxon Maxiel (26 overall)
2006 – None
2007 – Rodney Stuckey (15 overall) and Aaron Afflalo (27 overall)
2008 – D.J. White (29 overall)
2009 – Austin Daye (15 overall)
2010 – Greg Monroe (7 overall)
2011 – Brandon Knight (8 overall)
2012 – Andre Drummond (9 overall)
2013 – Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (8 overall)
2014 – None
2015 – Stanley Johnson (8 overall)
2016 – Henry Ellenson (18 overall)
2017 – Luke Kennard (12 overall)
2018 – None
2019 – Sekou Doumbouya (15 overall)
2020 – Killian Hayes (7 overall)
2021 – Cade Cunningham (1 overall)
2022 – Jaden Ivey (5 overall)
Ok, now let’s get to who I believe are the Detroit Pistons’ Top 5 first-round picks since 2000.
5 – Rodney Stuckey (7 seasons)
Rodney Stuckey was selected by the Pistons with the No. 15 pick in the 2007 NBA Draft. In seven seasons in the Motor City, Stuckey averaged 13.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game.
4 – Greg Monroe (5 seasons)
Greg Monroe was selected by the Pistons with the No. 7 pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. In a handful of seasons in the Motor City, Monroe was solid as he averaged 14.3 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game.
3 – Andre Drummond (8 seasons)
Andre Drummond was selected by the Detroit Pistons with the No. 9 pick in the 2012 NBA Draft. In eight seasons in Detroit, Drummond was a beast on the boards as he averaged 14.4 points, 13.9 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game.
2 – Tayshaun Prince (12 seasons)
Tayshaun Prince was selected by the Pistons with the No. 23 pick in the 2002 NBA Draft. In 12 seasons with the Pistons, Prince averaged 12.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game. He also helped lead the Pistons to a 2004 NBA Championship win over the Los Angeles Lakers.
1 – Cade Cunningham (1 season)
I am well aware that Cade Cunningham has only played one season with the Detroit Pistons but I am still putting him No. 1 on his list because it is pretty clear that he will be a star. During his rookie season, Cunningham averaged 17.4 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 5.5 assists. He also averaged 1.2 steals and 0.7 blocks per game.
Nation, do you agree with this list? What changes would you make?
