The Detroit Pistons have picked up where they left off last season. They are 5-1 and are on their way to another elite regular season.
This doesn't mean, however, that there aren't disappointing performances. The Pistons want to be championship contenders, so they need every gear of the engine to be functioning properly.
So far, that hasn't been the case. There are a few players who haven't played to expectations. The Pistons need them to step it up before it's too late.
Ron Holland
Holland had his best game of the season against the Brooklyn Nets, so let's hope that he will get out of this list soon. But unless he proves it against better competition, it's safe to say that Year 3 of the Ron Holland experience has been underwhelming.
The defensive production is still there. The 21-year-old is still wreaking havoc on that end, forcing a ton of turnovers, protecting the rim, and guarding multiple positions. There are still building blocks for a good player in the future.
But he is still very mistake-prone. His offensive game hasn't improved. His percentages from all over the court have gone down compared to last season. As a result, he is only playing 15.7 minutes per game.
Against elite competition in the playoffs, it will be hard to play Holland. On a team with Ausar Thompson and Jalen Duren, another non-shooting perimeter player like Holland is a very tough fit. This means that the Pistons will be forced to make a decision at the trade deadline, and unless Holland starts playing much better, justifying his role on the team will be tough for the third-year small forward.
Kevin Huerter
Huerter has the worst on/off rating on the team. The Pistons are a whopping 21.2 points per 100 possessions worse with Huerter on the floor than when he is on the bench, per Cleaning the Glass. It's still early in the season, and there can be plenty of noise in these stats, but Huerter has clearly been one of the weaker links on the Pistons.
The 28-year-old shooting guard is a defensive liability. The problem is, he doesn't do much offensively to make up for his shortcomings on the other end. He is hitting 37.1% from the field and 33.3% from downtown, and is 2/4 from the charity stripe.
Given that the Pistons gave him a three-year, $27 million contract in the offseason, they were expecting more from him. If he can't provide that, then he may not finish out his contract in Detroit.
John Collins
Every time there is a new player getting integrated into a well-oiled machine, there will be some growing pains. That is what John Collins is going through in Detroit at the moment.
To be fair to Collins, he hasn't been bad to start the season. In fact, he has been pretty solid defensively.
But he just hasn't made much of an impact offensively. Collins' role is simply too small right now. His usage rate of 16.4% is the lowest of his career. Despite the reduction in his role, he is also in the midst of his least efficient season with 48.8% True Shooting. This inefficiency is especially concerning because Collins is still hitting his threes.
Where the problem lies is Collins' decline in finishing around the basket and inside the arc. He is a career-low 47.2% from two-point shots and has taken only three free throws all season.
The Pistons don't have elite spacing. Perhaps this is negatively impacting Collins, but it's clear that he hasn't been worth the three-year, $51 million investment Detroit made in him.
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