The Detroit Pistons are 3-2 after the first 10 days of the 2025-26 NBA season. As expected, this has come on the back of a solid defense. The offense, on the other hand, has been a work in progress as the Pistons are looking for more shooting and shot creation.
Currently, the Pistons rank 19th offensively and are a bottom-10 team in most three-point shooting metrics. Their half-court offense has been a problem all season, and they try to make up the difference through offensive rebounding and pushing the pace in transition.
Injuries have obviously played a part in this as Jaden Ivey continues to be sidelined, and Caris LeVert has missed three games already. This created a golden opportunity for Marcus Sasser to step up into a larger role, but he is also dealing with a hip injury that has prevented him from making his season debut.
Marcus Sasser's Injury Couldn't Have Come at a Worse Time
Sasser was in and out of the rotation last year, playing in 57 games and averaging 14.2 minutes per game. This was rather disappointing, considering that he had a solid rookie campaign in 2023-24, looking like a decent draft find by the Pistons in the late first round. Ivey's injury could have been a big opportunity for the third-year player to play himself into a rotation role again, but he hasn't had that chance due to his injury.
The 25-year-old point guard can shoot the three, including off the dribble. Besides Cade Cunningham, there isn't another Piston on the roster who can create his own shot in the same way Sasser can. He is a good passer, playmaker, and pick-and-roll operator who can give the Pistons some offensive juice, especially when Cunningham sits.
Currently, Daniss Jenkins gets some tick as a backup point guard, but it's mostly Ausar Thompson who takes up the ball-handling duties when Cunningham is on the bench. While Thompson is an improved offensive player this year, he is not a shooting threat with the ball. This allows the defense to pack the paint and make things difficult for the rest of the team.
Giving Sasser some of those responsibilities could help unlock the offense in non-Cunningham minutes. As a 37.8% three-point shooter in his career, Sasser needs to be guarded from downtown. The Pistons are shooting 34.4% from three as a team, and take only 32.4 threes per game, both bottom-ten marks in the NBA.
Sasser would certainly help on that front, but he needs to get back on the court right away. If he doesn't and the Pistons keep winning, head coach J.B. Bickerstaff may find it hard to carve out a role for him.