The Detroit Pistons are coming off the best season fans have seen in nearly 20 years, but you wouldn't think they are a team on the rise in the Eastern Conference, given the way the offseason has played out thus far.
With Tim Hardaway Jr., Dennis Schroder, and, more than likely, Malik Beasley out the door, Trajan Langdon has replaced those veterans with Caris LeVert and Duncan Robinson. Those are two fine acquisitions in their own right, but LeVert has a noted injury history, and Robinson's game, while elite, is fairly limited to looks from beyond the arc.
This offseason was an opportunity for the Pistons to prove they have arrived and will be a contender in the Eastern Conference for years to come. While the future in the Motor City is still bright, it is hard not to view Detroit's offseason thus far as confusing at best and underwhelming at worst.
Pistons Blowing Rare Opportunity in the East With Offseason Decisions
This begs the question: Why are the Pistons not pushing more of their chips in to make a run at the top of the Eastern Conference this season?
The Eastern Conference will be as wide open as it has been in quite some time once the 2025-26 regular season tips off. The Boston Celtics will not be anything close to the juggernaut they have been in recent years following the Achilles injury to Jayson Tatum.
The same can be said about the Indiana Pacers in the aftermath of Tyrese Haliburton's Achilles injury during Game 7 of the NBA Finals. Losing Myles Turner in free agency only moves them even further back in the rest of the pack.
Even the Milwaukee Bucks are likely to take a step back despite still having Giannis Antetokounmpo on the roster.
This is quite perplexing. Two of the three teams mentioned above share a division with Detroit. Taking advantage of those franchises being down should be a no-brainer. Rather than trying to make that jump into the top half of the Eastern Conference, the Pistons appear content with just shooting for consecutive postseason appearances.
The Cleveland Cavaliers will still be a threat. As will the New York Knicks, even though they will look drastically different with Mike Brown at the helm than they did with Tom Thibodeau calling the shots. Beyond those two, there are questions surrounding the rest of the teams in that next tier. Detroit had the opportunity to break out of that group this summer, and they haven't done so.
Other teams in the East, namely the Atlanta Hawks and Orlando Magic, are going for it this coming season with the moves they made this summer. The Pistons could live to regret not similarly approaching the offseason.