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.
While both Rose and Kennard have been positives, the team is losing far too often to bad teams. Last night’s loss against the Chicago Bulls was their third straight this year against their Windy City Rivals; their record is now 11-19, good for 11th in the East. 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 week; the most they’ve allowed in a regulation game since the mid-1990’s teal era.
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.
No, there shouldn’t be any “Playoff Push begins now” radio ads come February like last season. The Pistons aren’t going anywhere any time soon, and the time has come to stop the charade.
It’s time to start selling off pieces of the team and start over, because this roster isn’t going anywhere.
Many thought the team should have attempted to trade Griffin at some point last season while his value was still high. He had been averaging 26.3 points, 8.1 rebounds and 5.4 assists after last year’s All-Star break as the team barely qualified for the postseason, serving as a mere appetizer for the NBA-best Milwaukee Bucks.
Unfortunately for Griffin, he’s looked nothing like he did last season, averaging only 16.3 points and 4.1 rebounds in the 15 games he’s appeared in.
Meanwhile, with Drummond slated to become a free-agent and with no guarantee he comes back, it would be proactive to attempt to receive assets in return from a team looking to make a championship push this year rather than lose him this summer for nothing.
We all had (some) fun with last year’s little “playoff push” that resulted in a postseason appearance that didn’t last any longer than the time it typically takes to microwave your favorite TV dinner.
It’s not going to happen this season, and with no clear sense of direction from the team (or ownership, for that matter), it would be best for all involved to start over.
