Ivey may be out of starting lineup (defense)

[Laimbeer]

Williams wants the Pistons to approach the game with a defense-first mindset, which could be a reason behind Thompson getting the start over Ivey. Thompson is an intuitive defender and rebounder, and the team believes he can become a lockdown presence on the perimeter. They didn’t get off to a good defensive start on Sunday, though, as Phoenix opened the game with a 14-2 run and led by 17 after the first period.

“Not much,” Williams said, when asked what he liked about his starting unit’s performance. “I did like our resilience, though. Nobody gave in and it allowed for us to get back in the game. Those guys are still trying to figure out who they are together.”

Ultimately, players who can defend and play with consistency will succeed under Williams. Ivey still has defensive growth in front of him, and it’s not coincidental he recently said he wants to make significant strides on that end of the floor.

Williams’ lineups aren’t set in stone yet, and Ivey still has time to separate himself from the pack. Williams will continue tinkering, but for now it appears the fifth starting position will either be Ivey, or Thompson.

https://www.freep.com/story/sports/nba/pistons/2023/10/11/detroit-pistons-jaden-ivey-bench-starting-lineup-experimenting-monty-williams/71134091007/

[Billl]

That's just a lot of speculation. That starting lineup got absolutely blown out

[whitehops]

not sure what the actual starting lineup will be but i don't think it's the end of the world if ivey comes off the bench. he's still going to get minutes and he'll likely finish a lot of games anyways. him coming off the bench makes him the primary ball handler while still having guys like morris and burks to help make plays. i don't think it would necessarily be to punish ivey for his defense.

[Cowology]

Yeah, I'd be fine either way. Eventually these guys should be starting together, but it doesn't need to happen from day 1. There are benefits and drawbacks to both sides. Pretty sure that whatever we do that Burks is not the answer. How long is Livers out? About 6 weeks?

[joedumars1]

If that happens I could see him wanting out sooner than later, maybe I’m being a negative Nancy lol

[MrBigShot]

Not a fan of that purely because of the potential off court ramifications. Ivey had a really strong finish to the year and he's one of our marquee young guys, I love what i've seen from Ausar but he hasn't played a game yet.

Instead, stagger his mins so that throughout the game he and cade both get plenty of time to be the primary ball handler

[mattao313]

I'm one of the few here that see Iveys as a equal to Cade so I honestly don't like this move but we'll see how it goes. At the very least I want him to have the ball more in the pnr, as last game imo he played too much off ball which doesn't take advantage of his skillset.

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[theBigLip]

It’s great that we are making defense a team priority. No playoffs if we can’t play D.

Not worried about Ivey and who’s starting. Things will work themselves out. Ivey will eventually be starting, which means he’ll be at least average on D. Not sure if it’s a few weeks or months from now, but I’m sure it will be this season.

[Canadafan]

It's just preseason. Means nothing. It's gonna he either Ausar or Stew that starts if Bojan is healthy. Cade and Ivey are gooood

If anything , I'd luv to see Harris and Bojan start at the forward spots. It goes against what Monty is preaching in regards to defense, but those 2 would open up the floor for our backcourt and Duren to shine.
Then bring our perimeter stopper off the bench with Burks and Morris and Stew and Bagels

[vege]

I was asking for that, so If that's really what happen I will be happy. Untill he play defense, he shouldn't start.

[theBigLip]

I was asking for that, so If that's really what happen I will be happy. Untill he play defense, he shouldn't start.

You might have mentioned it a couple of times this summer Glad you are getting your wish.

[Cowology]

It’s great that we are making defense a team priority. No playoffs if we can’t play D.

Not worried about Ivey and who’s starting. Things will work themselves out. Ivey will eventually be starting, which means he’ll be at least average on D. Not sure if it’s a few weeks or months from now, but I’m sure it will be this season.

I think we all more or less agree that in order for Cade/Ivey to work that they both have to be respectable 3pt shooters. Neither guy has to turn into Curry, but league avg (35ish%) so defenses have to respect the threat.

Ivey is already there. Or at least he was post-All Star break last season when he shot over 36% on 6.4 3pa per game. Dude was playing some really good ball down the stretch and I would not be shocked to see that volume continue to increase. He's gonna be a problem for other teams later in his career. On the defensive side of the ball the jurys is obviously still out, but kids got some work to do.

Cade is still the franchise. He's the man. But 27% don't cut it. He's had some stretches where he's been around 32%, and injury this, excuse that, blah blah blah. He's gotta get up around 35-36%. Maybe it's only 4-5 per game, but we need him to space the floor when he doesn't have the ball.

Sooo.... In order for Ivey to start... we need Cade to shoot better.

[vege]

I was asking for that, so If that's really what happen I will be happy. Untill he play defense, he shouldn't start.

You might have mentioned it a couple of times this summer Glad you are getting your wish.

My wish is for Ivey to play good defense, and that's something that will help.

[King Bugs]

That's just a lot of speculation. That starting lineup got absolutely blown out

Right!? If defense is the priority then we need to get some defenders because... where are they? I know everyone just saw the Suns starters shoot almost 90 (!) percent from the field on us while putting up 46 in the first quarter in our building.

I'm not even saying Jaden shouldn't be punished for mediocre defense, but then why is Bojan's starting spot so secure? How does that make sense?

Pretty much where I stand on it is if we don't believe in Jaden trade him while he still has value, the end.

[mattao313]

That's just a lot of speculation. That starting lineup got absolutely blown out

Right!? If defense is the priority then we need to get some defenders because... where are they? I know everyone just saw the Suns starters shoot almost 90 (!) percent from the field on us while putting up 46 in the first quarter in our building.

I'm not even saying Jaden shouldn't be punished for mediocre defense, but then why is Bojan's starting spot so secure? How does that make sense?

Pretty much where I stand on it is if we don't believe in Jaden trade him while he still has value, the end.

Exactly Ivey is bad on defense sure but let's not act like Cade, PF Stewart, and Bojan, are actual good on defense. I watch games and see these guys get blown by all the time

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[Cowology]

That's just a lot of speculation. That starting lineup got absolutely blown out

Right!? If defense is the priority then we need to get some defenders because... where are they? I know everyone just saw the Suns starters shoot almost 90 (!) percent from the field on us while putting up 46 in the first quarter in our building.

I'm not even saying Jaden shouldn't be punished for mediocre defense, but then why is Bojan's starting spot so secure? How does that make sense?

Pretty much where I stand on it is if we don't believe in Jaden trade him while he still has value, the end.

I don't think Bojan's spot needs to be secure, but making guys work for it can sometimes be good for their development. I got no clue about Ivey. I'm not smart enough to figure that out from where I'm sitting, but maybe he's the kinda guy who responds to a challenge and Monty just threw down the gauntlet. We'll see. Could be some really good coaching happening right now. Accountability & discipline are things best learned early.

I still expect Ivey will be starting opening day if not sooner.

[breezypeezy]

Right now we have nothing.

Monty should go full Lombardi on them and see whose strong.

Forget being a players coach. run them till bodies drop and see whose left Monty!

[Billl]

There is a big difference between making mistakes and not putting in effort defensively. I'm fine with "make him earn it" if we are talking about defensive effort.
If we are talking about mistakes, basically all vets are going to make fewer defensive mistakes than all young players. I don't think that is a reasonable metric for who should start on a rebuilding team.

Last season, I don't think we saw consistent effort from Ivey on the defensive end. I'm not sure if that was because we put such a high load on him offensively (for his style of play) or if it's a bigger problem, but he can't take plays off this year. I'm 100% on board with that line in the sand. You can make all the mistakes you want as long as they are high effort mistakes. Get caught in an overplay or read a screen wrong? Ok. Don't stay connected and try to fight through a screen? That's an issue. With his speed and athleticism, there is excuse for that.

[DetroitDon15]

I've thought alot about this idea of being a starter or sixth man. I think that it might makes for this team going forward to take the next step. I agree Thompson is better defensively and on the glass. It might make sense to bring Ivey off the bench for scoring. He could be a good sixth man. BB/Thompson could switch easily on defense. Thompson guarding the better offensive player. Thompson also won't need to be high scorer while focusing on defense first. He can develop his offense more over time. I feel that this roster might be better balanced with Thompson in the starting line-up.

[Canadafan]

That's just a lot of speculation. That starting lineup got absolutely blown out

Right!? If defense is the priority then we need to get some defenders because... where are they? I know everyone just saw the Suns starters shoot almost 90 (!) percent from the field on us while putting up 46 in the first quarter in our building.

I'm not even saying Jaden shouldn't be punished for mediocre defense, but then why is Bojan's starting spot so secure? How does that make sense?

Pretty much where I stand on it is if we don't believe in Jaden trade him while he still has value, the end.

Maybe Bojans not really injured and he's about to be traded