7. Detroit Pistons
Last season: 41-41, 8th in Eastern Conference
Notable additions: Derrick Rose, Tony Snell, Sekou Doumbouya, Markieff Morris
Notable subtractions: Wayne Ellington, Glenn Robinson III
With very little wriggle room inside the salary cap, the Detroit Pistons have been forced to largely stand pat after a first-round sweep at the hands of the Bucks last season. They’ve addressed some glaring holes, albeit on a limited budget, but the new faces probably won’t be enough to lift them above the East’s playoff fringes.
Two of their biggest issues last season were wing depth and consistent point guard play. Trading for Tony Snell was a clear nod to the former, and the ex-Bull is a solid defender and shooter (career 38.2 3PT%). He’ll be thrown straight into the starting lineup, though, and with no obvious backup, the Pistons will still face the same issues on the wing as last season.
Assuming his health holds, Derrick Rose could be one of the savvier additions of the offseason. That’s a big assumption to make, as he only managed 51 games for the Timberwolves last season, but his play when healthy and on the court was his best since his first major injury in Chicago. It should help that he won’t be required to start or play big minutes, as Reggie Jackson remains as the incumbent at the point and sophomore Bruce Brown has shown some promising signs during the preseason.
Blake Griffin and Andre Drummond are both All-Star level players, and Griffin alone lifts Detroit’s ceiling a few notches after an All-NBA season where he returned to his best. However, the Pistons may be asking too much from players that simply aren’t ready, with Brown, Snell, Thon Maker and Sekou Doumbouya looking more and more likely to be prominent in the rotation.
There’s only so much the two-star big men can do without more help, and it looks like they could end up in the same mid-conference purgatory they found themselves in last season.