Amid the NBA playoffs the NBA Lottery draft for the non-playoff bound teams took place and with it the NBA draft order has now been determined. For the lottery teams this year's draft marks hope and optimism as he talent pool here is deemed to be considerably better than it has been in the past few years; mind you it seems like the draft pundits say this same thing every single season.
Nonetheless, the teams who are holding lottery bound picks must be looking at ways to complement their rosters, be it by using the upcoming selection or via a trade on draft day. Not every team with lottery selections are able to address their needs via the draft as there is only so much talent available at each position and since these rookie deals are guaranteed, the new incoming salary amounts must be accounted for within the team's salary cap.
As the NBA Draft approaches eDraft.com will look at each of the lottery teams and identify their needs heading into the draft as well as who might be available to fill hose teams needs. Our draft coverage won't stop there though as post-draft we will have analysis of the picks as well as report cards for each of the teams as to how they fared.
Holding down the eighth pick in the draft are the Detroit Pistons who are looking for some help in improving off their 32 win season in 2014-15. A team that boasted of two productive big men in Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond really should have been able to put up more wins on the season then they were able to. Factor in the last season acquisition of Reggie Jackson and the vastly improved play of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and on paper this isn't a 32 win team.
The Pistons do lack depth from their bench and the are without the services of a versatile small forward who can create offence for not only himself, see exodus of Josh Smith, but also play well off of the twin towers. Although as free-agency approaches it is increasingly likely that Greg Monroe will leave for a big money deal. If/when this happens the Pistons will be able to look at a forward who likes the post play as well as one who can score from the perimeter.
Key Pieces to Build Around:
The Pistons have a point guard under contract for next season, unfortunately that player is Brandon Jennings who missed half of the season due to injury and is scheduled to make $8.3 million. The Pistons do have a qualifying offer on the table for Reggie Jackson but it is highly unlikely that Jackson accepts that offer. Jackson may decide to decline the offer and become a restricted free-agent in order to land a big money deal. Now that deal may be too much for the Pistons and they let him walk or the Pistons could match which would keep Jackson in Detroit for another four or five years. If Jackson is unhappy in Detroit he could try to force the Pistons into a situation where they don't match an offer sheet or he simply takes the qualifying offer and becomes an unrestricted free agent next season when the salary cap goes up due to the television deal. Any which way you slice it, Jackson is in line for a hefty pay raise somewhere in the foreseeable future; it just comes down to who will be paying him.
Jackson's situation aside, it is clear that the Pistons want Andre Drummond to be the cornerstone of the franchise moving forward. This of course comes with just cause as Drummond is only 21 years old and averaged a robust 13.8 ppg, 13.5 rpg and 1.9 blocks per game in what was only his third NBA season. While keeping Drummond happy and surrounding him with complementary players is important, he alone cannot propel the Pistons to the playoffs or make them relevant enough even in the lesser Eastern Conference. The Pistons would be well served to lock up Jackson on a new deal and then use KCP as that serviceable two guard.
State of the Union - Detroit Pistons
It is all but official now that the Pistons are moving on from forward Greg Monroe as the club just completed a trade with Milwaukee where they acquired Ersan Ilyasova for Caron Butler and Shawne Williams. This is exactly the kind of player that Stan Van Gundy needs in Detroit as he continues to build an offense around the play of Jackson and Drummond. The floor-spacing Ilyasova offers a much better fit at power forward moving forward here. Van Gundy continues to mold his club as he sees fit. There is no question that this is to be a faster team than last season and this pickup certainly affirms this.
This is a great move for Detroit as they got a jump on free agency and managed to acquire a player on a very cap friendly contract for next season. Ilyasova has a team option for the year after so this is a pretty low risk move heading into the draft. With this need addressed, the Pistons can look to their needs at small forward and assess what kind of talent can be had via the draft for that position.
Draft Needs:
Should the Pistons draft here to address their small forward needs rather than use up some of their $18 million in available salary cap; then I would expect them to take Mario Hezonja here. Hezonja has been playing for Barcelona in the Euroleague where he has shown flashes of brilliance over the past couple seasons. He has good size and wingspan that would allow him to play as a shooting guard or small forward in the NBA. He possesses a good shooting stroke as he can definitely knock down the three balls and he can stretch the offense just how Stan Van Gundy likes.
There is room for improvement with Hezonja as he is still fairly slight of frame to be defending some of the bigger small forwards and he does need to work on a mid-range game once defenders start running him off his spots. All in all though this is a good pick for the Pistons as Hezonja won’t need to be pressed into starter duties right away and he should be able to acclimate himself to the rigors of the NBA life while contributing nicely for this Pistons club.