Tom Greene | June 24st, 2019
The Detroit Pistons have been seemingly in a state of purgatory in the NBA. Since the Chauncey Billups trade in 2008, the Pistons have not had a pick inside the top seven. And, to show how Detroit’s draft picks have done since then, said seventh pick was Greg Monroe. Although Andre Drummond has had some success in Motown, almost every other draft pick has had to find a different home to pan out… if they did. So, with the past questionable draft history in mind, let’s take a look at how Detroit did this year.
The Detroit Pistons Select…
Sekou Doumbouya, Deividas Sirvydis and Jordan Bone. As well as trading for future draft picks. Four second-rounders, that is (Three of these being traded for Sirvydis and Bone).
Let’s look at the picks closely. Doumbouya had a lot of fans guessing, as Pistons fans should. A lot of pundits are also calling him the steal of the draft. However, looking at his stat line, it looks like he has some work to do to become fulfill his potential. Thankfully for the Pistons, Dwane Casey has proven he can coach great teams…as long as LeBron James doesn’t stand in the way. He can coach up the Frenchman effectively, and have him take a few reserve minutes per game to start off.
Sirvydis holds the same questioning that Doumbouya has. However, the Pistons plan to keep him playing in Lithuania, and see if he can play in Detroit after a year or two. This seems similar to drafting a Major League Baseball player out of high school and letting him play in College, then signing him or he goes for a re-draft. With the one-and-done rule trying to be phased out, this could happen more often in the years to come.
As for Sirvydis, the Pistons are looking for more NBA-ready bodies to take the floor. The guard has a nice left-handed shot, but needs more time for development. He isn’t NBA-ready just yet.
Jordan Bone was under the radar at Tennessee, behind the likes of Admiral Schofield and Grant Williams. Let’s make this clear about the Vols in 2019. They were a veteran-laden team led by a very veteran coach, Rick Barnes. Barnes, like Tom Izzo, in a way, liked to groom college players over the course of four years. This team was the epitome of that, reaching the second weekend of March Madness for the first time since he became the head coach. Schofield, Williams, and Bone were the three guys that lead the team. I think Schofield will become better than Williams, in terms of draft stock, but Bone is a solid pick. He can possibly become a leader of this team, but it will take time.
Pistons’ Draft Grade
This draft gives us more questions than answers as two European prospects were drafted. However, with new leadership on the floor, it has a much better chance of panning out than drafts in the past. In college, Cs get degrees. In the NBA, Cs could make the playoffs. I give this draft a B- on the basis of drafting Bone and new coaching. The ceiling is Bone and Doumbouya starting, with Sirvydis coming to the States later in the year. The floor is none of them seeing any playing time in Detroit. It’s now up to Casey to determine that role.
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