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As the Lions look to be setting themselves up to miss out on drafting a top QB next year, I'm starting to think the Pistons need to go one more year focussing on internal development, and letting the chips fall as they may. Only major changes I'd make would be with Rotations, and have Bey be our super sub off the bench so he can have the ball in his hands more. Livers fits better with Cade as a 3 and D guy that keeps the ball moving

Killian/Cade/ Edwards
Cade/ Diallo/ Livers
Grant/ Bey
Top3 2022/ Bagley
Stewart/ Picket

This would net us a likely top 8 next year to pick up another young prospect, plus we can go after a bigger free agent.

I'm personally fine with one more year of growth, especially since if you look at all the great players, you typically don't hit that all star gear until your 3rd year. So while I think Cade is gonna be very good next year, I look for the 2023-2024 season as the year that they can legitimately make the playoffs (real playoffs).

Having said that, for me it really depends on who you get in the draft. If they get a big and traded Grant, they're going to be way too young to compete for the playoffs, even with a big FA. But if they get a Jaden Ivey and extend Grant, they legitimately could make the play-in if they get a big FA. IMO at least. So it partially depends on the draft outcome.

Nooo Y’all trying to run Cade out of town Grant Hill style

aad wrote:Nooo Y’all trying to run Cade out of town Grant Hill style

Grant Hill was a Piston for 6 years. I don't exactly think Cade is short sighted enough to not see that a team who was the 3rd worst team in basketball might be a couple of years away from being a potential playoff contender.

If people were setting up 5 year 76ers level tanking, I'd 100% agree with you. But that's not at all what anyone is saying, at least from what I've read.

If they get lucky and this pick turns out to be really good then i really dont care what direction they take for once.

2 star level players on those contracts kinda give a few chances to try some stuff or tank it out and get try for another one lol

aad wrote:Nooo Y’all trying to run Cade out of town Grant Hill style

I can assure you its not trying to run Cade out of town. Its about trying to draft another young superstar or two to grow with Cade so he never wants to leave. Cades not going to want to leave if he has another player his age thats a top 20 guy to run with.

We can easily wait one more season and enter a better free agent class + get a better pick and not spill any blood with a 2nd year Cade Cunningham.

I can’t lie I wanna win I can’t stand losing but whatever decision weaver makes I will roll with it

buzzkilloton wrote:

aad wrote:Nooo Y’all trying to run Cade out of town Grant Hill style

I can assure you its not trying to run Cade out of town. Its about trying to draft another young superstar or two to grow with Cade so he never wants to leave. Cades not going to want to leave if he has another player his age thats a top 20 guy to run with.

We can easily wait one more season and enter a better free agent class + get a better pick and not spill any blood with a 2nd year Cade Cunningham.

This!

As a non free agent destination our best chances are via the Draft.

We got Cade - that's awesome. But Stewart, Bey & Hayes aren't looking like perennial All Star calibre players.

We need another one at a minimum. IF we land a top 3 pick then hope we hit on it.

Unless we can land a legit difference maker why rush to spend our cap space?

Weaver needs to do this right so we're set up for a decade and not do stupid **** just to save his job like Joe & SVG did.

From the outside looking in Gores has stayed away and let Weaver do what he chooses to do. Fingers crossed that continues

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I’m all for keeping FA signings to Bagley and maybe another low cost chance on a young guy like the josh Jackson signing.
Just run young guys all year. Can keep grant if we draft sharpe or Ivey other wise trade him for youth or picks.

I don't believe this team has the ability to stealth tank unless they get hit by injuries. You can hoard your gold, draft a project and only play guys under 25 but the team is still going to win too many games.

You can be patient. You can focus on "development". But if you are expecting a top 8 pick outa that deal you are going to be really disappointed.

Cowology wrote:I don't believe this team has the ability to stealth tank unless they get hit by injuries. You can hoard your gold, draft a project and only play guys under 25 but the team is still going to win too many games.

You can be patient. You can focus on "development". But if you are expecting a top 8 pick outa that deal you are going to be really disappointed.

They can take a big step forward, win 10 more games, and still be the 8th worst team in the NBA. The Lakers were with 33 wins.

If your team this year compared to last year is plus two rookies and minus an above average NBA starter in Grant, AND you improve by 10 wins, that's good progress.

Jsindto wrote:

Cowology wrote:I don't believe this team has the ability to stealth tank unless they get hit by injuries. You can hoard your gold, draft a project and only play guys under 25 but the team is still going to win too many games.

You can be patient. You can focus on "development". But if you are expecting a top 8 pick outa that deal you are going to be really disappointed.

They can take a big step forward, win 10 more games, and still be the 8th worst team in the NBA. The Lakers were with 33 wins.

If your team this year compared to last year is plus two rookies and minus an above average NBA starter in Grant, AND you improve by 10 wins, that's good progress.

You are severely underselling this teams capabilities. Simply having a healthy Cade for an entire year is an easy +10 wins by itself. This team was playing .500 ball after the All-Star break and much of that without Grant. We had a host of other injuries and were actively tanking the last 10 games. If you think we're going to be a 33 win team next year and that is some huge accomplishment then you aren't really paying attention.

Cowology wrote:

Jsindto wrote:

Cowology wrote:I don't believe this team has the ability to stealth tank unless they get hit by injuries. You can hoard your gold, draft a project and only play guys under 25 but the team is still going to win too many games.

You can be patient. You can focus on "development". But if you are expecting a top 8 pick outa that deal you are going to be really disappointed.

They can take a big step forward, win 10 more games, and still be the 8th worst team in the NBA. The Lakers were with 33 wins.

If your team this year compared to last year is plus two rookies and minus an above average NBA starter in Grant, AND you improve by 10 wins, that's good progress.

You are severely underselling this teams capabilities. Simply having a healthy Cade for an entire year is an easy +10 wins by itself. This team was playing .500 ball after the All-Star break and much of that without Grant. We had a host of other injuries and were actively tanking the last 10 games. If you think we're going to be a 33 win team next year and that is some huge accomplishment then you aren't really paying attention.

I'd love to be wrong, but the pieces around Cade next year if they trade Grant and don't get a big FA will be extremely young. We'll see what Vegas thinks after FA. It sounds like you may be expecting ~38 wins. I'd expect something around ~33 wins. If they go for the slow build that is.

One can have both

I hope we win a lot next year. I hope we make the playoffs. But let’s not get there spending a lot of money on average free agents. Let’s let our young core get playing time. Let’s move Grant.

So if we make the playoffs and have a middle first round pick, so what. We are a young playoff team! And if we don’t make it, our guys still get experience and we get one last lottery ticket.

We should try to win, because that's what winners do. We should build a culture instead of trying to out-clever the system. Leave the latter to perennial losers like OKC.

Kalamazoo317 wrote:We should try to win, because that's what winners do. We should build a culture instead of trying to out-clever the system. Leave the latter to perennial losers like OKC.

OKC had a team that had Durant/Westbrook/Harden that would of titled if not for LBJ. Mind you all 3 of those guys were drafted at the top of the draft. Weaver building us like he did that OKC team is not a bad thing. Being wise with cap space and building through the draft is not building a bad culture.

These playoffs have been awesome. Pistons have two steady role players in Beef Stew and Bey that I think will be legit players in the postseason, and the top dog to lead the way. If Pistons are back in lottery, that'a disaster as in something seriously went wrong.

I'm expecting lottery (at the moment). This isn't the Eastern Conference of yesteryear, the East is pretty strong now, the worst teams that made the play-in had 43 wins. We're gonna have to be pretty damn good to even threaten for the play-in let alone the playoffs.

I know people are going to bring up the injuries, but injuries are a part of the game. You'll be hard pressed to find many (any?) playoff team in either conference that didn't lose a player of significance for some stretch of time. Those squads got hit with the injury bug and were able to tread water and overcame it, we got hit and sank to the basement of the East. If pristine health is a requirement for a legitimate run at the play-in, we're already doomed because our best player was in & out of the line up with random nicks and bruises all season.

Depending on how the summer comes together I might be able to get on a board with the Pistons pulling a happy birthday on the NBA. Right now? Nah... but we'll be better though... back-end-of-the-lottery better.

King Bugs wrote:I'm expecting lottery (at the moment). This isn't the Eastern Conference of yesteryear, the East is pretty strong now, the worst teams that made the play-in had 43 wins. We're gonna have to be pretty damn good to even threaten for the play-in let alone the playoffs.

I know people are going to bring up the injuries, but injuries are a part of the game. You'll be hard pressed to find many (any?) playoff team in either conference that didn't lose a player of significance for some stretch of time. Those squads got hit with the injury bug and were able to tread water and overcame it, we got hit and sank to the basement of the East. If pristine health is a requirement for a legitimate run at the play-in, we're already doomed because our best player was in & out of the line up with random nicks and bruises all season.

Depending on how the summer comes together I might be able to get on a board with the Pistons pulling a happy birthday on the NBA. Right now? Nah... but we'll be better though... back-end-of-the-lottery better.

I do agree this is where we’ll end up. We’ll be better but the back end of the lottery. However, I think we will have better depth this year.

Weaver has spent every available dime he could each free agency and he will again this year. And this year is the most he’s been able to spend. Only question is will he spend it on long term contracts of 3-4 years or short term of 1-2 years.

I think he adds one long term rotational player that will make us better. That will still leave him with enough cap space next year to still sign another near max player.

I haven't been bold in my predictions in a LONG ASS TIME, because of the nightmare that was Darko, and Andre Drummond. Some of y'all have been here for a few years, others for a decade. I'm rolling up on 20 years here, and watching the Pistons since 87'. (Since 12 years old)

Cade is an extremely unique player, that the Detroit Pistons have never had before. I have seen very few players like him either, in all the years I've been watching, and if there is one thing I know for absolute certain(it's not even a bold prediction in my mind)is that no matter who is on the floor with him, next year Cade is going to drag this miserable franchise to at least the play-in next year.

It doesn't matter if Weaver "rolls with youth" or not. The absolute bottom number of wins this team ends up with next year is 35. This is if everything goes wrong. Pick is #7 and a bust, the team extends Grant, and adds a stupid free agent, or none at all. Cade is that good.

If the team has a decent offseason, we are looking at 41 wins. Great offseason, 45+.

So, if everything just bottoms out, sure, I could see the Pistons end up with a another low end lottery pick, but I wouldn't bet against Cade, who looks like a floor raising badass. Also, I've been drinking.