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Detroit Pistons: Despite Sweep, Future is Promising

By Griffin Fabits

Jan 29, 2016; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; A general view of tip off during the game between the Detroit Pistons and the Cleveland Cavaliers at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 29, 2016; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; A general view of tip off during the game between the Detroit Pistons and the Cleveland Cavaliers at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports /
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Despite the loss in the first round of the NBA Playoffs, the future is bright for the Detroit Pistons and their starting five.

The three-pointer Reggie Jackson hoisted up could have been a game-winner, but instead knocked the Detroit Pistons out of the first round of the 2016 NBA Playoffs.

Jackson’s last-second desperation shot barely made it to the rim, capping off a four-game sweep by last year’s Eastern Conference champions.

The Cleveland Cavaliers may have won the series in four games, but the Pistons gave LeBron James and Co. a run for their money. Three out of the four games were decided by less than ten points, with the exception of the seventeen-point blowout in Game 2.

Forget about being bounced in the first round. Instead, focus on the fact that the future seems to be very bright in the Motor City.

All five starters are no older than 26 years old, and had no playoff experience prior to the series against the Cavs. Reggie Jackson (26), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (23), Tobias Harris (23), Marcus Morris (26), and Andre Drummond (22), are all set to return next season.

Drummond led the league with 14.8 rebounds per game, Jackson finished fourth in the division with 18.8 points per game, and Harris was among the top players in the league with a .469 field goal percentage.

KCP averaged nearly 15 points per game, and Morris 14.1. All five of the Pistons’ starters averaged more than 10 points per game in the ’15-’16 campaign.

Not to mention, the team possesses two superstars in the making with rookies Stanley Johnson (19) and Darrun Hilliard (23).

Their young and talented core is complemented by a proven winner in head coach Stan Van Gundy.

Van Gundy began his head coaching career with the Orlando Magic in 2007, and in his first season, guided them to a 52-win season. The Magic would lose to the Pistons in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, but Van Gundy was soon given a winning reputation.

The following season, Van Gundy’s Magic won 59 games, but ended up losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals. Fast forward one year and the Magic were back with another 59-win season, this time being defeated by the Boston Celtics in the 2010 Conference Finals.

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Van Gundy was head coach of the Magic for five seasons, and despite clinching a playoff berth in all five, was relieved of his duties in 2012.

The Pistons became the laughingstock of the Eastern Conference, and desperately needed a permanent head coach to get them back on track.

They found the solution, and on May 14, 2014, Van Gundy was hired in hopes of bringing the Pistons back to life.

The Pistons finished 32-50 in Van Gundy’s first year, failing to reach the playoffs for the sixth straight season after being a postseason-regular from 2001-2009. But, the next year, they tacked on 12 more wins, ending at 44-38, and playoff basketball returned to Detroit.

Their 2016 playoff run was over sooner than fans would have liked, but the experience they gained is crucial for the team’s success in the future.

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They may not be the Bad Boys, or the World Champs of ’04, but they could be on to their own thing. The Pistons are young, now experienced, and hungry for another run at a title.

Let it be known, basketball fans, the Detroit Pistons are coming.

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